


THE MEANING OF LOVE

by orphan_account



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Attempted Murder, Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Drug Abuse, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Gen, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Murder, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Reader-Insert, Suicide Attempt, maybe sex idk yet, medical drug use
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-02
Updated: 2016-12-14
Packaged: 2018-05-11 02:49:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 45,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5611024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You fell a long time before you tripped on a root and fell into the world of monsters.  They think that you're a monster too.  They aren't wrong exactly, but there's a big difference between a murderer and a magic skeleton.</p><p>ABANDONED</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Get Your Goat

**Author's Note:**

> Side project during the wait for new Gravity Falls final episode. Will be more to come.

_ Run. _

 

You have to  _ run. _

 

You can’t let them catch you.

 

You know what they will do.

 

Do you really think they’ll spare you after what you did?

 

There’s nothing left here for you anyway.

 

You fall over a root.  You see a hole in the ground.  You can’t see the bottom.

 

You’re dead if they catch you.

 

You’re dead if you fall too far.

 

Maybe it will be better if it’s quick.

 

The thought of being alright again…

 

It fills you with DETERMINATION.

 

You jump.

  
  


<3 <3 <3   DETERMINATION   <3 <3 <3

  
  


When you wake up, you hurt everywhere.  You almost don’t remember what happened to you.  You almost want to forget.  You push yourself up to sit.  There are bright yellow flowers all around you, soft perfume filling the air around you.  It’s nice.  You’re glad it broke your fall.  They were growing surprisingly thick for flowers.  Someone must be taking good care of them.

 

You try to stand up, but immediately fall again.  You stomach churns.   _ Oh shit _ , is the only passing thought before you throw up next to the flowers.  You spend a few moments dry heaving, and trying to spit the bile from your mouth.  At least you’re not bleeding so much any more.  Your head still hurts like a motherfucker.  You probably have a concussion or something.

 

You stand again, steadying yourself.  You limp out of the clear toward a doorway with imposing arches and lengthy pillars.  You don’t know where to go, and anywhere’s better than no where, right?  Just keep walking and you’ll end up somewhere at least.

 

You look around for your bag, and pull out a couple of items: your multi tool pocket knife (which you put in your pocket, just in case), your cell phone, your keys, a flask, a lighter, a bag of weed, and a box of cigarettes.  Well, at least you have something useful.  You eye the flask, deciding a drink is not a good idea with a head injury.  The keys will most likely be useless, considering your house wasn’t down here, and neither was your instrument box.  You keep it anyway out of habit, and because you like your ghost keychain.

 

You lean on the pillars as you pass, hoping the less weight will help aid in your speed to get… wherever, you suppose.

 

Past the archway is another small sunlight patch, a single flower waiting in the center of it.  

 

“Howdy!” something with a high voice greets loudly as you walk by.  You look around in panic, hand on your knife in your pocket, before you look down seeing that the flower has… a pair of eyes and a grin?

 

“What the fuck”.  Well, what can you say?  You always were eloquent.

 

“Whoa there pal, watch the words will you?” it continues on in amusement.  “Anyways, I’m Flowey!  Flowey the Flower!” it says bouncing slightly.  “Hmmm.... You’re new to the UNDERGROUND, aren’tcha?  Golly, you must be so confused!”

 

“Uh, duh.  Flowers don’t usually talk where I’m from,” you grumble, shifting on your feet.

 

The flower gives you a look.  “That place sounds really boring.  Sounds to me like someone better teach you how things work around here.  I guess little ol’ me will have to do,” it says looking like it’s preparing, and you brace yourself out of instinct.  “Ready?  Here we go!”

 

As it speaks, you feel an odd tugging sensation in your chest.  Looking down, a bright orange heart glows brilliantly.  There’s a crack in the side, and you feel… something.  The heart glows strongly, to your surprise.  “That heart is your SOUL!  The very culmination of your being!  And gee whiz, it sure looks like it’s seen better days!  That sure has a big crack”.  It almost looks gleeful at this, and you feel rather offended, but let him continue.  “Your soul starts out weak, but it can grow strong with LV”.

 

“Well, what’s LV?” you ask.

 

“Why LOVE of course!” It says bouncing with a large grin.   _ Jesus, this fuckin guy… _  “You want some LOVE, don’t you?”   _ Not from you, you creepy loser, _ you think, but keep it to yourself.  You want to learn.  “Don’t worry!  I’ll share some with you!” Flowey says, winking.

 

_ Creepy ass bitch _ .  “Down here, LOVE is shared through… little white ‘friendliness pellets’”.  If that didn’t sound shady to you, you didn’t know what did.  The flower summoned… little, white marshmallow looking things.

 

You don’t trust them.

 

You dodge quickly and efficiently.  His eyes narrow, and his smile becomes more condescending.  “Hey buddy, you missed them.”  He speaks slowly, as though you were a child eating glue.  You knew you were right about him now, now that his facade began to crack.  “Let’s try again, okay?”

 

He sends out another semi-circle of pellets, and you dodge again.  He scowls in irritation.  “Is this a joke?  Are you braindead?  RUN.  INTO.  THE.  BULLETS”.

 

Now, you are truly afraid.   _ Bullets?! _  Scared by the flower’s betrayal, you dodge with even more enthusiasm.

 

Turning to the flower, you see fangs protruding from Flowey’s mouth.  His eyes had gone dark, with two little white pupils.  The scene was… frightening to say the least.  “Y̵͕̺̖̯̺̰o̸͍͈̘̪u̬̥̰̜̺̦̪ ̹k̬̳̦͚n̷͉o̦̟̠̗w̵͇̞͕̖͕ ͇̹̝͔̖͞ͅwh̞̼͠a̜̭̤̯t̮̞͍͕͙̣͙'̛̗s͈̣͍̮̹ ҉̤͕go͚͙͔̪͕̗i̴͈̲ͅn͏͖͕̪̟̖g̪̰̭͎̱͜ ͚̱̠͠ͅo̳͕͔͖n̗͉̖̠͔͘ͅ ̦̤̺̹̲ẖ̺̺̯͕̭͙e̞̙̩̙r͎̘͚̲̞̖̹e̤̤̫̻̘͜ͅ,̶ ̨̣͎d̵̜o̘̯͕̙͓̘̩n̢̞͔̘͍̫'̖͎̮͙̠̹t̨̤͔ ͡y̺͈̲̭͙̟ou̕?͙” he growls softly.  “Y̻̯̥̹ͅoư̥͓͓ ̞̮̯͔͔̩j͇̦̙̻u͠s̹t̵͕͇̺̞̖̱̖ ̗̞̠͚̘̟w̼͚̺̫͠a̯̣̥̹͙͖n̸̠̙͈ṯ̢̹͉̥̜ȩ̟ḍ͚̲̖̯ ̦̰̰̤͓̲̳͝t̠̺͓̮̤̙ơ̰ ̺s͏͉e͙̤͙̫̖e̪̠̖̺͓̙ ͈̭̯̼̖̹ͅm͙̫͇e̛͍͔͔̱̮̬ ͏̟̱͖̥̥s̙ù͍͈̺f̱̠͎͜ͅfe̡̲̪͖̭r.͙͖̙̼̩̲̤”

 

You feel the air around you get tight, and a circle of bullets surround you, ensuring no escape.  “D͏̶͈͔̖̱̮̙̭͉͙̣͉I̴̵̗̦̪̮̘̟͕̝̪̳̠̻̘͍̺͟͜͠E̶̱̻̹͢͢͞ͅ.̶̨̣̞͈̪̱̥̱͉̮̳̮͢”

  
  
  


The circle gets tighter and tighter around you, as Flowey’s face morphs into a horrible nightmare of a grin.  His cackling cuts off in surprise as the bullets are incinerated by a protective wave of white and black fire, knocking both the demonic flower and its bullets away.

 

You turn to look for your savior, seeing a… 7 foot tall, effeminate goat… monster?  You heard the rumors about Mt. Ebott like everyone, but you hadn’t believed it.  She was sort of pretty, in a motherly way.  Like your friend’s hot mom, or something.  “What a terrible creature, torturing such a poor, innocent-” she begins, cutting off as she looks to you with surprise.  “You… are not a child,” she says hesitantly.

 

“Uh, no.  Thank you, though.  I, ah, really appreciate it,” you say, with a small smile, trying to seem unimposing, as you grip your side.  “She looks to your hand, eyes widening.  “Oh my!  You are bleeding, human!”

 

You follow her line of sight, seeing blood run through your shirt, beyond a few tears.  “Dammit… this is my… favorite… shirt…”

 

You fall to your knees, and your world goes dark.

  
  
  


<3 <3 <3   DETERMINATION   <3 <3 <3

  
  
  


You are warm when you wake up.  You open your eyes reluctantly after a few moments of silence.  You push yourself up.  Looking around, you find yourself in a child’s room.  The walls are pastel orange, with stuffed animals everywhere.  Another bed is across the room, along with a set of drawers and a wardrobe and a lamp.  A piece of pie is on the floor, along with what looks like some tea.  You get up, and limp to the pie.  There’s a note next to it in elegant cursive, with little flowers dotting the ‘i’s and exclamation marks.

  
  


_ Human, _

_ When you have awoken, please eat this pie and drink this tea.  You will feel better after eating.  I made the pie fresh with snails this morning!  The tea is with the flowers from outside that you saw.  Come find me down the right side of the hall when you have finished, and please bring your dishes with you. _

 

_ -Toriel _

  
  


You suppose that ‘Toriel’ must be the goat monster that you saw when you arrived, but… really?   _ Snail _ pie...?  Well, you’d hate to seem rude and not eat it… but what if it was poisoned?  You reasoned with yourself that she wouldn’t have taken care of you if she wanted you dead, and after some thought, you eat a piece of the greenish pie with a small bite.  It… wasn’t bad, to be honest.  Pretty good, really.  It was garlic-y and sort of chewy with crunchy pieces on the top.  You take a bigger bite, with more enthusiasm.  To your surprise, the more you ate, the better you felt.  By the time you finished with the tea, you felt better than you ever had.

 

You stretched, grabbing the teacup and two plates, making your way to the right, entering into a small, but cozy living room-dining room space.  ‘Toriel’ was sitting in a recliner by a roasting fire, looking peaceful as she flipped through a book with a snail on the cover with a pair of purple reading glasses on, with one of those chains that hooks onto the arms of the glasses that you’d seen librarians wear.

 

You cleared your throat as you entered the room, making her jump.  She looked up to you with surprise.  “Human!  I did not hear you coming!” she politely got up, and set her book down, letting her glasses hang by their chain she came up to you.  “My apologies for not dressing your wounds… I don’t remember how to take care of human wounds…”

 

You smile gratefully, if nervously.  “Don’t worry about it.  Thank you for the snail pie and tea.  They were both really good.  Thanks for taking care of me too… You didn’t have to”.

 

She smiles, revealing four sharp fangs in her mouth.  “Not to worry, dear!  It’s always good to find another snail fan!  I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins, which is where my home resides.  I go by the flowerbed every day to see if humans have fallen down...  If you’re feeling up to it, would you like a tour?  There’s no rush if you aren’t feeling good enough yet…” he says with hesitant eagerness.

 

“My name is (F/n).  Thanks again,” You say with a nervous smile, enjoying the woman’s kind acts, even if you were still suspicious.  “and sure, sounds good!  Where do we start?”

 

She offers you her arm, a fuzzy paw at the end.  Now that you look, her feet are paws as well.  You look into kind green eyes.  You take the arm with shaking palms, with a nod.  “L-let’s go”.

 

Toriel leads you to a room with a scrappy looking dummy in it.  She gestures to it.  “You know of our history, correct?” she asks.

 

“Yeah, there was a war and humans sealed monsters underground, right?  After some kids were killed?” 

 

She flinches at the mention of children being killed, and her eyes get a little colder, and a little more sad.  “Yes… the king and queen’s children were killed…”

 

“Ah, shit, I’m sorry, that must have really been awful,” you say, feeling bad.  She starts at you.

 

“It’s… quite alright.  It was a long time ago.  Please watch your language, though.  I don’t like cussing very much,” she says patiently, as you sigh and nod.  If you must… “As a human living in the Underground, monsters may attack you.  However!” she states, noticing your darkening expression.  “Worry not!  The process is simple.  When you encounter a monster, you will enter a FIGHT,” she says, sounding very much like a teacher you used to like.  “While you are in a fight, strike up a friendly conversation!” she recites, like she has practiced saying this a thousand times.  

 

A friendly conversation…?  A friendly conversation didn’t get you away from that demon spawn flower, a friendly conversation didn’t keep  _ him _ from-

 

“Stall for time.  I will come to resolve the conflict”.  Ah.  The real reason comes.  She just didn’t want you to kill anyone.  You considered they might be her friends.  Well, you would try and restrain yourself.  “Practice talking to this dummy, please, so I may make sure you understand”.

 

Sighing, you move forward to tap the dummy’s shoulder.  To your surprise, your soul shines in front of your chest, and Toriel gasps.  You turn to her, and see her horrified face staring to your bright orange, cracked heart.  “Oh, my friend… what happened to you…?”  Annoyed with her, you ignore the question, seeing text in your mind.   **You encountered the Dummy.**  Ooookaayyyy…. well, let’s see:  There was your name next to  **LV: 9** , and  **HP: 45/52.** It was probably your health and… level…?  You weren’t really able to play many video games at home.  There were four boxes you could see: **Fight** … you supposed that one was obvious.   **Act** , probably where you would talk.   **Items** , you guess you could use them in a battle, and  **Mercy** .  Seems simple.  You chose to  **‘Act’** , and tried to think of something to say, beyond your humiliation at her inquisition of your soul.

 

You decided to go with a really dumb joke, since it was, after all, just a practice, as well as a dummy.  “Hey, why couldn’t the cows go into the stable?” you say, thinking of a joke you’d hear a while ago.  “Because there was no more ‘ruminant’!”   **The Dummy thinks that your joke was awful.  Dummy flees.  YOU WON!  Earned 0 XP and 0 gold.**

 

To your surprise, as the dummy turns around by itself, Toriel begins to laugh hysterically.  “Oh my!  I can tell we will get along alright, my friend!” she breathes airily, laughing with giggly snorts.  It’s pretty adorable if you’re honest.

 

She moves on to show you puzzles in the Ruins, showing you how to avoid them.  A few times, you stumbled onto a Froggit, or a Whimsun, which were easy to talk to, since they both seemed to eye your LV before running away frantically.  Toriel seemed confused as to why, but seemed to brush it off as ‘stranger-danger’ or you being ‘intimidating’.  Your LV must be higher than theirs or something.  You brushed it off.  You admit you wondered what would happen if you killed a monster, but you were too convinced that they might be Toriel’s friends, so you decided not to, unless they really hurt you.

 

You were rather fond of the spiders as well.  Their cider was fairly good, for being made  _ with spiders _ and so were their donuts.  They were very good conversationalists too, with the right topic.  You occasionally brought moths and flowers from the outside to them for food and decoration.  You would find a free donut on your pillow every now and again.

 

But you were becoming restless.  The Ruins were very small after you got used to them.  And Toriel was wonderful, especially when it came to making bad puns to each other,  but you needed more than one monster and a few spiders in your life.  It seemed Toriel noticed this too, and soon became almost overbearing in her need for you to stay, saying wonderful things like how happy she was that she wasn’t alone anymore, and how she was glad you were friends, and it made you so guilty.  You couldn’t live like this.  Not again.

 

One day, a few weeks later, you asked quietly, “Toriel… where’s the exit to the Ruins…?”

 

Her eyes widened.  “Why do you want to know…?” she asks in disbelief.  

 

Determined not to lose your nerve, you stutter anxiously, “I- I just… want to… um…”

 

She gazes far away and sets down her book.  “I have to go do something.  Stay here,” she murmurs sternly, rushing to the hallway.  You hear pawsteps descending some stairs.  You follow after, confused by her immediate departure.

 

Going deeper into the basement was an oppressive thing.  It was surprisingly freezing in the long, dark hall.  You make out Toriel’s shape by her ears and dainty horns.  “Tori… what’s going on…?”

 

She doesn’t face you.  “Ahead of us lies the end of the ruins… a one way exit to the rest of the Underground… you wish to return home, do you not?” she whispers, the sound too loud in the hall.  I am going to destroy it”.  You feel your blood turn to ice.  “No one will ever be able to leave again.  Please, my dearest friend and comrade… go back upstairs”.  Were… were you wrong about her?  All this time?  Was she just… pretending to be your friend so she wouldn’t be alone…?  You didn’t want to believe it, but it was what it was looking like.

 

“What?!  Toriel, wait!”  you call, trying to keep up with her long and rapid strides. _  Damn she’s fast! _

 

She stops and you almost bump into her.  “Every human meets the same fate…” she begins, tone heavy with emotion.  “I’ve seen it again and again:  They come.  They leave.  They die.  You aren’t a naive child, (F/n).  They… ASGORE… will kill you…” she pauses, to let you absorb the information.  “I am only protecting my dearest friend,” she says shakily, her voice cracking, but firm.  “Please, (F/n).  Just go back upstairs…”

 

You refuse taking off after her once again retreating figure.  Now that you knew she was trying to protect you, you couldn’t let her destroy the Exit.  “You can’t stop me,” she growls with no real anger, just growing unhappiness.  “This is your final warning”.

 

You find her at the end of a hall, where a door with the Delta Rune inscribed upon it.  “Toriel, stop this!  You know this isn’t right!” you plead, hand on your knife, your fear growing.

 

She turns and scowls.  She… actually looks fierce.  You’ve never seen her so intimidating before.  “You want to leave so badly?  Hmpf.  You are just like the others”.  She looks at the floor, as though searching.  She soon eyes you again, and faces you with shoulders back.  “There is only one solution to this.  Prove yourself… Prove to me you are strong enough to survive!” 

 

A loud crack fills the air and the familiar FIGHT options appear.  You glance over your options a few times, staring at the  **FIGHT** button.  If she wanted to fight, you weren’t going to let her down.  You could lower her  **HP** until she was too weak to fight any longer.  That sounded good.  You decided to strike, flicking out your knife.

 

Big mistake.

 

You sliced harder and deeper than you had meant to.  Her  **HP** falls to 0 rapidly, a massive number above it.  Her face is halfway between startled and anguish with pain.  Dust blows from her lips with a cough.  “Y… You… really hate me that much…?”

 

You move to her, her dust falling onto you from the gash in her side you had scored.  “T-Toriel… no!  No no no NO NO NO NO NO NO!  TORIEL I’M S- SO SORRY, NO PLEASE!”

 

She quivers a moment.  “Now I see who I was protecting by keeping you here.  Not you…” she whispers, coughing more dust.  “But them!” she says with regret, grinning angrily, a grimace revealing sharpened teeth.  She chuckles a bit, before dissolving into dust, leaving behind a large white heart, her soul, and her favorite purple robe.  “TORIEL!”  you scream.  You feel dizzy like you’re going to black out.  “TORIEL!” you cry.

 

**You called for help…**

 

**...but nobody came.**

 

You pass out into your best friend’s dust.

  
  
  


<3 <3 <3   DETERMINATION   <3 <3 <3

  
  
  


You find yourself at the corner of the hallway, Toriel standing at the Exit of the Ruins like nothing ever happened.  “Toriel?!”  You whisper, but she doesn’t hear you.  Had you done that?!  How?!  You’d wanted so badly to go back… to save her… your best friend… perhaps fate had done you a good deed?  Given you a second chance?  Whatever the case, you weren’t going to let it go to waste.

 

But how… how had you killed her?  You recall a conversation you had with a Froggit, once.   _ “If you really intend to hurt someone, your attacks will increase in damage.  Your weapons and  _ **_AT_ ** _ will also relate, along with your  _ **_LV_ ** _ ”.   _ But you had only wanted to lower her to 1  **HP** … perhaps it took more control?

 

You ran down the hall.  She seemed to say the exact same thing as before.  She checked looked at your  **LV** and faltered.  She checked your  **STATS.**

  
  


**(F/n)**

**AT-15 (+99 WPN BONUS)**

**DF-37**

**Will do better by her friends this time.**

 

You don’t want to think about the meaning behind the statement.

 

Your fight began, but instead, you chose to  **SPARE** her.  She seems confused.  Toriel attacks with circular motions of fire.  She seems to be relying on the fire magic mostly.  At one point a fireball hits you, and instead of the intense pain you thought you would get, you only felt the feeling of being a little too warm.  You check your  **HP.  HP: 50/52** Only 2  **HP** ?  

 

_ “...If you really intend to hurt someone, their attacks will increase in damage...” _

 

_ Toriel didn’t want to fight you.  She just didn’t want you to leave. _

 

You continue to  **SPARE** her and dodge.  She looks at you with confusion.  “What are you doing?  Attack or run away!”

 

“Tori, please stop…” you plead.  Her aloof mask loses strength.  

 

She deals another attack and you dodge easily, the attacks slowing.  “What are you proving this way?  Fight me, or leave!” she snarls, throwing molten flames at you.

 

“Just stop!”

 

“Stop looking at me that way,” she pleads softly, silver flames avoiding you now.  You don’t even need to dodge.  “Go away!”

 

You look through her.

 

She frowns sadly, putting her hands by her sides.  “I know you want to go home, but… But please… go upstairs now”.  She looks down at you, your hands shaking, but you stand firm.  You have to do right.  No one will have to die this time.  You can do this right.

 

“I know we don’t have much but… we can have a good life here”.  You stare sadly at her, her eyes filling with tears.  “Why are you making this so difficult?  Just… go upstairs… please…”

 

You shake your head at Toriel.  She laughs without humor.  It’s not the giggly laugh you love with snorts in the middle.  It’s hollow.  And unhappy.  “Funny, is it not?  I cannot save even my closest friend…” she sterns her sad expression.  “No, I understand.  You are unhappy trapped down here.  I saw it… I thought if I talked to you more, or made my home more appealing, you would lose interest in leaving… but it was going to happen either way, wasn’t it?  I now understand I was just making you more unhappy and feeling unnecessarily guilty, which you should never have felt in the first place.  It would not be right to keep you here because of my own selfishness… my own loneliness… I will not stop you any longer…” she says, and  **SPARES** you herself.  You exit the fight.

 

“Tori… I know that you’re unhappy here too… why not come with me?  We can leave here together.  Is there no one you care about beyond this door?” you ask.  

 

Her eyes flash in emotion.  “There is someone, but I know not who he is.  He will be better without me.  And there are still some things that I must take care of in the Ruins… You may go, but I will stay”.  She brings you close in a hug.  You hold her tight, tears soaking her tunic, you feel her own fall into your hair.  She offers you her arm like she had the day you met.  “Come.  I will help you prepare”.

 

She gives you a canteen of water that will never let it freeze or evaporate, and a slice of Butterscotch-Cinnamon Pie in a tupperware container.  “It’s cold outside the ruins.  You will find the town Snowdin if you continue east.  I knew you would want to leave someday, so I made you a coat,” she says blushing slightly, revealing a black trenchcoat with a rust colored scarf and an orange heart shaped pin that resembled your soul, complete with a tiny crack in the side.

 

You gasp.  “Tori it’s beautiful… I  _ coat _ wait to wear it!” you joke, eliciting a giggly snort from her.  

 

She holds up a pair of brown boots.  “I guess you  _ boot _ er try them on then,” she snickers as you laugh.  Her smile fades.  “I’m really going to miss you,” she whispers.

 

“I’ll miss you too, Tori,” you murmur as she leaves the room.  The apparel fits perfectly.  Toriel is un _ apparel _ lelled in fashion.  Ha ha.

 

You say goodbye, and Toriel waves sadly.  She asks you to call her.  You plan on it.

  
  
  


<3 <3 <3   DETERMINATION   <3 <3 <3

  
  
  


“Clever.  Verrrrry clever,” a familiar voice calls from below you.  You pull back your lips at the stupid golden flower.  “...But I saw what you did,” he said with a grin, shifting his face to your best friend’s.  “You killed her.  And then went back because you regretted it,” he crowed with a grin.  You did that…?  It didn’t seem unfeasible with all the other crazy things happening.  “It’s been awhile since anyone but me could do that.  I’ll be keeping an eye on you…” Flowey said with a grin.  You try to step on him, but he slides out of the way.  “Wow.  Rude”.

 

You snarl at him and his expression actually gets scared.  “Do you ever shut your fucking mouth, you rabid beast?” and he disappears for what you hope is the last time.

 

You look to the final arch.

 

The sight of such a big step in your life, symbolized by an intimidating archway…

  
It fills you with  **DETERMINATION** .


	2. Gone To The Dogs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meeting the skeleton brothers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about marking that as a one-shot, I promise that it isn't.
> 
> Anyways, please keep in mind that you aren't genocidal like No-Mercy-Chara or True-Pacifist-Frisk. You are YOU.
> 
> Special thanks to Miaune, who gave a good review, and some things to consider, and actually helped formulate what I want the ending to be like, so thanks for that, pal! Thanks to Goaty-McGhee who helped boost my moral, and also to Babe-Chan, who I see giving my stories kudos all the time, lurking in the shadows like a cat at a house party. Don't think I don't see you! B)

The second you step out into the cold, you feel invigorated.

 

_ He _ always hated the cold, so when winter would come, you would build a tiny cave in a snowdrift after the streets were plowed, and would hide there.  Sometimes, the neighbor’s guard dogs would come with you.  They were a nice comfort to have.

 

Seeing an enormous snow covered bush, you moved closer to inspect.  You noticed a dark glimmer in the bush.  You reach in, finding it hard to pull out.  You frown at the stubborn object, moving snow out of the way of...a… camera…?  What was this doing- wait.  You see it’s activity light on.  You snapped the antenna out of anger that someone was spying on you, and cut the exposed wires with your knife, and the light faded from the camera.

 

You readjusted your bag, and moved onwards.  The forest was dark, which was how you liked it most of the time.  Maybe it was some resemblance of night right now?  You and Toriel never bothered to keep track of time, just sleeping and eating when you needed to.  The lack of routine was very liberating to the both of you.

 

Your feet crushed the snow, your boots making your footsteps heavier than usual.  You stepped over a heavy looking branch, feeling peaceful as you watched the snow.  You heard a loud  **_CRACK_ ** and swung your head back, hand on your knife.  The enormous branch was crushed in half like it was nothing.  You listened.

 

It was a silent as death, a wind whistling in the trees.

 

You shrug like you were brushing off the snapping branch, but inside, you were anxious.  Someone was following you.  Someone who didn’t want you to know.  You heard crunching of steps behind you.  You forced yourself to walk, like you hadn’t heard.  If he attacked you, you would have the element of surprise.  Maybe you could intimidate them into submission.  You’d rather not kill anyone so soon after killing Toriel, her death leaving a bitter taste in your mouth.

 

Soon, you reached a barred bridge over a deep gouge in the center.  A deep voice rumbled from behind you.  “H u m a n.  D o n’ t   y o u   k n o w   h o w   t o   g r e e t   a   n e w   p a l ?  T-” and that was all you heard before you slammed the dark figure into the thick post next to you, your knife between his eyes.  Dark eye sockets sparked with surprise, and white dots came to life deep in them.  He’s so light, you lift him off the ground, pinning him to the post like a frog about to be dissected.

 

“...” you stare at him with narrowed eyes, as sweat beads down his skull.  A skeleton.

 

Huh.  You guess that it’s not that much different than a giant bipedal goat with paws that can make fire.

 

He coughs slightly, chuckling nervously.  “gee, pal, you could’a at least bought me dinner first…”

 

Okay, anyone that says something like that, is probably not as dangerous as you might think.

 

You set him down on the ground of the bridge, feeling a little bad for being so rude, but your annoyance at being followed outweighed any remorse you felt.  You were a little disappointed in him, to be honest.  “If you’re trying to follow someone, you should step a little lighter.  I could hear you all the way at the beginning of the Ruins,” you growl, still irritated.

 

He sighs in relief, adjusting a white turtleneck under a blue hoodie.  he shuffles his feet… is he wearing house slippers with basketball shorts?  Wow.  What a douchebag.  It always annoyed you when men did that when it was winter.

 

“yeah, sorry about that.  i’m supposed to be keeping a watch for humans right now, but honestly, i don’t really care about capturing anybody,” wait, capture?  “anyways, i’m sans.  sans the skeleton,” he says offering a hand that you grab out of reflex.  It produces a loud farting noise, and his grin widens.  He reveals a tiny whoopie cushion on his hand.

 

Was… was this guy for real.

 

You think you might actually like this guy.  Maybe you’ll get along after all.  You’d always been a sucker for people who could make you laugh.   Your lips twitch up in a small smile.  His grin widens.  “heh.  the ol’ whoopie cushion in the hand trick… it’s always funny.  y’know… my brother papyrus… he’s a human hunting FANATIC… but he’s not, y’know… DANGEROUS or anything.  he just wants someone to do his puzzles with,” he says, grin softening.  Aw.  Guy must really care about his brother.  You curse yourself for being such a softie.

 

You sigh.  “Alright, I’ll play along, if that’s what your trying to ask of me,” you resign, putting your knife in your coat pocket.  

 

His eye sockets light up a little.  “heh.  thank’s buddy.  go right on through the gate-thingy’s bars, then.  i got an idea,” he says, sauntering behind you as you make your way to a clearing.  “okay, here he comes.  go and hide behind that conveniently shaped lamp”.

 

The lamp was huge, wide enough to hide yourself behind.  You slid through the snow to the large appliance.  Rapid footsteps increased, prompting a relaxed, “sup, bro?” from Sans.

 

A nasal voice replied loudly, “YOU KNOW WHAT ‘SUP’, BROTHER!”  Okay, you had to see this guy.  You peek around the edge of the lamp, and almost laugh.

 

It’s a tall skeleton wearing a crop top, booty shorts, with bright orange mittens, gloves, and boots.  He looks pretty frustrated as he continues, “IT’S BEEN EIGHT DAYS AND YOU STILL HAVEN’T… RECALIBRATED.  YOUR.  PUZZLES!  YOU JUST HANG AROUND OUTSIDE YOUR STATION!  WHAT ARE YOU EVEN DOING?!?” he complains loudly, making wild hand gestures as you slide back to safer hiding.

 

“staring at this lamp”  Wait, what?  That bastard!  After all the trouble you went of going over to the lamp, he was just going to reveal you?  You take back every nice thing you didn’t say to him.  “it’s pretty cool.  you wanna look?”

 

The tall skeleton, Papyrus (?) gives a frustrated sigh, and you hear him stomp his foot.  “NO!!  I DON’T HAVE TIME FOR THAT!!  WHAT IF A HUMAN COMES THROUGH HERE!?!”  You get the feeling Sans knew he would say that.  Never mind, he can have the nice things you didn’t say back.  “I WANT TO BE READY!  I WILL BE THE ONE!  I MUST BE THE ONE!  I WILL CAPTURE A HUMAN!” he shouts with determination.  His tone soon changes to a reverent tone, and you peek around again, seeing him with his hand on his chest, and a longing expression.  “THEN, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS… WILL GET ALL THE THINGS I UTTERLY DESERVE!  RESPECT… RECOGNITION…”  Aw, now you felt bad.  Poor guy just wanted a little appreciation.  “I WILL FINALLY BE ABLE TO JOIN THE ROYAL GUARD!”  Well, this is the first you’ve heard of that, but it didn’t seem unfeasible with the king and queen’s children having died…  Now you just felt worse.  “THE PEOPLE WILL ASK, TO BE, MY, ‘FRIEND?’  I WILL BATHE IN A SHOWER OF KISSES EVERY MORNING”.  What a sweet guy.

 

“hmmm,” Sans hums.  “maybe this lamp can help you?” he says.  You’re smothering chuckles.  What a jerk!

 

Papyrus stamps the ground again and screeches, “SANS!!  YOU ARE NOT HELPING!!  YOU LAZY BONES!!”  Was… that a pun…?  Oh no… you were in real trouble, as you hide your snickers.  “ALL YOU DO IS SIT AND BOONDOGGLE!  YOU GET LAZIER AND LAZIER EVERYDAY!!!”

 

“hey, take it easy.  i’ve gotten a ton of work done today…” he says.  Yeah, a skele _ ton _ .  Ha.  You crack yourself up.  “A skele _ ton _ ”.  He slaps his knee with a chuckle.  You shove your coat sleeve into your mouth to muffle the laughs you can’t help but let out.  Great minds think alike.

 

“SANS!!”

 

“come on.  you’re smiling,” he says, eyeing you peeking out from behind the lamp.  You grin and give him the thumbs up.  He winks at you.

 

“I AM AND I HATE IT!” Papyrus sighs.  “WHY DOES SOMEONE LIKE ME… HAVE TO DO SO MUCH JUST TO GET SOME RECOGNITION…”

 

“wow, sounds like you’re really working yourself…”  Oh god, please no, not again… “ _ down to the bone _ ”.  

 

God dammit, thank god for your coat’s muffling skills.  You’re crying a little.

 

“UGH!” Papyrus scowls, giving Sans a resigned glare.  “I WILL ATTEND TO MY PUZZLES… AS FOR YOUR WORK?” he pauses, thinking.  “PUT A LITTLE MORE…  _ BACKBONE _ INTO IT!” he retorts, running away, laughing.  Oh shit, you can’t take much more pun...

 

As soon as he’s gone, you fall out from your hiding place, crying with laughter.  You’re laughing like it’s the funniest thing you’ve heard in a long time, and it kind of is.  The tenseness in your back loosens at the new memories of punny skeletons.  You roll onto your back, hand over your face.  Sans chuckles, walking over to you, and you get up to greet him, still gasping with laughter.  “Sans… buddy… pal… You can’t make clever puns while I’m hiding… It’s just not gonna work”.

 

His grin never fades, but is less artificial than the first time you talked.  “heh.  sorry, pal.  couldn’t help myself.  you should get going, he might come back, and if he does… you’ll have to sit through more of my hilarious jokes,” he says with a wink.  

 

“I’m pretty okay with that, honestly.  But yeah, I better move it,” you say picking up your dropped bag, pulling out a cigarette and your lighter.  You hadn’t smoked at Toriel’s, thinking it would offend her, and you were a little more annoyed than usual without the nicotine.

 

Sans eyed the cigarette and lighter curiously.  “so you’re still gonna help out with my bro then?”

 

You blow some smoke out of your mouth with a sigh.  His eye sockets widen.  “Yeah, sure, why not?” say walking away. 

 

“uh, see ya then pal.  i’ll be up ahead.  and don’t worry about my bro.  he’s not dangerous, even if he tries to be,” he says, walking off towards the Ruins.  You don’t comment.

 

Wandering on, after inspecting a box, you follow the eastern path.  Papyrus is talking animatedly to Sans.  How had he gotten there so quick…?  A mysterious man indeed.  “SO, AS I WAS SAYING ABOUT UNDYNE,” Papyrus says, as you clear your throat, catching his attention.  He starts, staring at you.  You puff on your cigarette.  He looks at you with dazzled eyes, and turns to look at Sans before turning back to you and looking back at Sans.  Sans mimics him, with a blank grin, and eventually, they just begin spinning around, before turning away from you, huddling together, Papyrus looking up at you in a sneaky manner.  You stare on in amusement, chuckling slightly.  “SANS!!  OH MY GOD!! IS THAT… A HUMAN!?!?!??!?!”

 

“uhhhh… actually, i think that’s a rock,” Sans replies slowly.  What?  You look to your left.  A rock was indeed next to you, doing it’s stony thing.

 

“OH,” Papyrus says in disappointment.  You snort, letting out another puff of smoke.

 

“hey,” Sans says, tapping Papyrus’s shoulder.  “what’s that in  _ front _ of the rock?”

 

Papyrus looks over again, looking just as dazzled as the first time.  “OH MY GOD!!!  Is that… a human?” he stage whispers to Sans.  

 

Sans gets on his toes and whispers to Papyrus’s skull with a coned hand, “yes”.

 

Papyrus yells another ‘OH MY GOD!!!’, before yelling, “SANS!  I FINALLY DID IT!  UNDYNE WILL… I’M GONNA… I’LL BE SO…” before chanting the word ‘popular’ a bit.  You can’t hold back a smile.  He clears his throat(?) before addressing you with great theatrics.  “HUMAN!  YOU SHALL NOT PASS THIS AREA!  I THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL STOP YOU!  I WILL THEN CAPTURE YOU!  YOU WILL BE DELIVERED TO THE CAPITAL!  THEN… THEN!!!  I’M NOT SURE WHAT’S NEXT”.  You grin.  What a goofball.  “CONTINUE… ONLY IF YOU DARE!!!”

 

You smile around your cigarette, blowing out some smoke.  “Lookin’ forward to it, Great Papyrus,” you reply, and he puffs out his chest.

 

“WE HAVE A HUMAN WHO KNOWS THEIR HIJINKS!  GOOD!” he states, before running off while laughing loudly.  Adorable.  You see why Sans loves him so much.a

 

“well, that went well,” Sans shoots to you, his grin pleasant.  “i’ll be sure to keep an eyesocket out for ya,” he states, following his brother at an easy pace.

 

The sight of a pair of brother’s taking care of each other…

 

It fills you with longing.

 

You move on, coming across a creature called a “Snowdrake”.  It’s name was an ice pun.  What was with monsters and puns?!  As soon as it attacks, it says boastfully, “Fighting you will be  _ snow _ problem!”

 

You chuckle in amusement, and it’s eyes light up, giving a birdly grin.  “Laughter!  Ha ha!  Dad  _ was  _ wrong!”  Oh, gee, that went  _ south _ pretty quick.  He gave you a small amount of gold before hurrying on.  You check the coin sack you’d made back at the Ruins with some of Toriel’s scrap fabric.  653 g.  You were practically rolling in dough.  You didn’t really know what the economy was like here, so maybe that wasn’t a lot?  Based on the spiders, you supposed it was a lot…

 

You come across a sign near another sentry station.  A dog is carved into the roof.  The sign reads something about not moving, and doesn’t really make much sense.  Walking on, you hear a bark.  A black and white husky dog rears up from behind the station.  A dog treat hangs from it’s lips like a cigarette.  “Did something move?  Was it my imagination?  I can only see moving things…” you take note of the dog’s cloudy blue eyes.  Must be partially blind.  “If something WAS moving… for example, a human…” he says, and your blood gets a little cold.  “I’ll make sure it NEVER moves again!”  It leaps out of the station and blocks the way, summoning two knives of blue.

 

You are pulled into a fight.  Your orange heart beats with determination.   **Doggo blocks the way!** You remember your neighbor’s guard dogs.  Dogs didn’t hurt people for no reason.  It was always to protect something.  You weren’t going to kill a dog, they were innocent creatures.

 

It bared a cyan blade of magic to you and snarled, “NO MOVING!” it was too quick for you to move away.  Instead, it pushed through you, but you felt… nothing?  He tried again as you attempted to spare him.   **Doggo can’t seem to find anything.**  You can’t seem to spare him yet… you check the ACT suggestions.   **Pet.**  Well, who were you to argue?  You did like dogs…

 

You rub his ear, and he looks around barking wildly and his dog treat falls from his lips.  “I’VE BEEN PET!  I’VE BEEN PET!!!” he howls.   **Doggo has been pet.**  He raises his knives and slices through you again without harming you.  Blue attacks must not do anything if you don’t move.  You spare him, as his yellow name glares at you.

 

You exit the fight.  Doggo leaps back into the station, shuddering, leaving behind 30g on the ground that you pick up.  He pulls on his ears in distress.  “S-s-s-something pet me… Something that isn’t m-m-m-moving…” he looks around wildly and lights a new dog treat.  “I’m going to need some dog treats for this…”  He hunkers down and whines below the counter.

 

Well, that happened.

 

Moving to an icy area, Sans greets you, leaning on a tree.  “hey, i forgot to mention.  my brother has a very special attack.  if you see a blue attack, stop and don’t move, and it won’t hurt you”.

 

You snort.  “I figured it out earlier, thanks,” you tell, and he grins a little more.

 

“great, then i don’t have to tell you anything.  which is great, because i love doing nothing at all”.

 

You wave goodbye, and he lazily waves back, as you slide along the ice with vigor.  You missed ice skating.  Going up, you find a snowman.  He asks you to take a piece of him with you.  Other than being a little gross, you took a bit of snow from his back.  He thanks you, and wishes you luck.  You put it in your bag in an empty ziplock you found at the Ruins.

 

You move forward and advance toward a plane where you find Papyrus yelling at Sans for ‘napping’ all night.  Sans replies that he thinks it’s called… ‘sleeping’.  You giggle, drawing attention to you.

 

“AH-HA!  THE HUMAN ARRIVES!” Papyrus cheers.  “IN ORDER TO STOP YOU… MY BROTHER AND I HAVE CREATED SOME PUZZLES!  I THINK YOU WILL FIND THIS ONE… QUITE  _ SHOCKING _ !!!”  Why do you get the feeling you’ve just been punned?  “FOR YOU SEE, THIS IS THE INVISIBLE… ELECTRICITY MAZE!!!”  Oh shit, how were you going to do this?  “WHEN YOU TOUCH THE WALLS OF THIS MAZE,” Papyrus continues, oblivious to your distress and pulls out an orb.  “THIS ORB WILL ADMINISTER A HEARTY ZAP!  SOUND LIKE FUN???”  No.  “BECAUSE!  THE AMOUNT OF FUN YOU WILL PROBABLY HAVE… IS ACTUALLY RATHER SMALL I THINK…”  Well, at least he wasn’t hiding it.  “OKAY, GO AHEAD NOW!”

 

He never gave you the orb.  You shrug, and step directly into something.  Papyrus is zapped and he screeches.  “SANS!!!  WHAT DID YOU DO?!?!”

 

“i think the human has to hold the orb,” he replies, picking at his phlanges.

 

“OH.  OKAY”.

 

He trods throught the maze, leaving large tracks with his boots.  You smirk.  A way around.  “HOLD THIS PLEASE,” says Papyrus, putting the orb on your head.  It stays, for some reason.  Halfway through the maze, you realize your cigarette went out when you bumped the wall.  Getting a clever idea, you take the orb off of your head, and touch your cigarette to the ball.  “WHAT ARE YOU DOING HUMAN?” Papyrus calls.  

 

“Sorry pal, my cig went out,” you tell, touching the wall.  The orb lights the cigarette’s end and you puff on it happily again.  You slide through the rest of the maze with ease.  “INCREDIBLE!  YOU SLIPPERY SNAIL!” Papyrus yells.  “YOU SOLVED IT SO EASILY… TOO EASILY!  HOWEVER!!  THE NEXT PUZZLE WILL NOT BE SOLVED SO EASILY!  IT IS DESIGNED BY MY BROTHER, SANS!”

 

“Hi, Sans”.

 

“sup”.

 

“YOU WILL SURELY BE CONFOUNDED!  I KNOW I AM!  NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH!” Papyrus continues before sliding out of the area.

 

Sans beckons you, hands in his pockets.  “hey.  thanks.  my lil bro seems like he’s having fun”.  He then goes on to tell you about the silly outfit Papyrus was wearing.  Apparently he made it a while ago for a costume party, and now wears it as a ‘battle-body’.  You giggle and Sans’s face lights up.  “man.  isn’t my brother cool?”

 

You snort.  “He’s a  _ bone _ ified sweetheart is what he is.  What a great guy,” you tell him.  he laughs lazily at your joke.

 

You move on, and buy a few Nice Creams from a blue rabbit looking vendor, to support him.  You have a lot of fun pushing a giant snowball around, before sending it into a hole.  You check upwards, noticing a ‘His’ and ‘Hers’ checkpoint stations.  You take note of the sign, reading about humans, snowmen, and puppies.  Rolling around, huh?  Better remember than next time you get in a FIGHT with a dog.

 

Moving to the right, you find Papyrus and Sans again, with a little piece of paper on the ground.  “HUMAN!” Papyrus calls with glee.  “I HOPE YOU’RE READY FOR…”  Papyrus looks around, eyes scrutinizing the paper on the ground.  “SANS!!  WHERE’S THE PUZZLE!!!” he screams accusingly.

 

Sans gives a placating gesture to the paper.  “it’s right there.  on the ground.  trust me.  there’s no way they can make it past this one”.

 

Sweet guy was trying to make it easier on you.  You look at the paper.  A… word search?  You stare at it, finding many of the words, but it was technically insolvable, since one of the words in the search was misspelled.  You walked past it, setting it back on the ground.  “SANS!  THAT DID NOTHING!!!”

 

“whoops.  i knew i should have used today’s crossword instead”.

 

“WHAT?!  CROSSWORD?!  I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU JUST SAID THAT!  IN MY OPINION… JUNIOR JUMBLE IS  _ EASILY _ THE HARDEST!”

 

“what?  dude, that easy-peasy word scramble?  that’s for baby-bones”.

 

“UN.  BELEIVEABLE,” Papyrus complains, looking to you.  “HUMAN!  SOLVE THIS DISPUTE!”

 

You don’t even need to think about it.  “Jumble.  Spelling sucks”.  You blow some smoke rings.

 

“HUMANS MUST BE VERY SMART TO BE JAPED BY THE SAME THINGS I AM!” Papyrus says eagerly cheering.

 

Sans snaps his fingers.  “darn.  you dang humans.  you sure showed me, bro”.  Papyrus runs off, laughing in victory.  “thanks for taking his side to make him happy,” Sans tells you gratefully. 

 

You chuckle.  “I wasn’t lying.  I’m really bad at spelling,” you tell him, moving with Papyrus to the next area.

 

There’s a plate of spaghetti on a table with an unplugged microwave.  Papyrus must have put it there.  It’s frozen itself to the table.  You inspect the unplugged microwave.  All the settings say ‘spaghetti’.  You read Papyrus’s note, giggling by the time you finish.  Who signs a letter with ‘NYEH HEH HEH HEH!’?  Apparently, Papyrus.  So adorable.

 

Clearing the snow from the ground and finding a map, you are attacked by another dog.  It’s wearing armor, and carries a large shield and a sword.   **Lesser Dog appears.**  You asses the options, going to act.  All the suggestions say  **Pet** .  You pet the dog decisively.  It’s neck lengthens.  You continue to pet out of curiosity.  You decide to stop when its head clears the trees.  You spare it.  Or could you say…  _ fleas _ ?  You’re so funny.

 

You run into a few more monsters.  Two Icehats and a ‘Jerry’.  You briefly consider killing the Icehats, just because they were so conceited, but decided against it, not considering it worth the effort, and the skeleton brothers would probably notice if you got dust on you, and you didn’t want them to be afraid of you.  You ditch Jerry, because fuck, that guy was unbearable.

 

You click the switch up top, and make your way to the bottom, and are attacked again by a pair of dogs, speaking in unison.  “What’s that smell?  Where’s that smell?  If you’re a smell… Identify yoursmellf!”  The dogi sniff around, before smelling your hands.  “Hmm… here’s that smell… It makes me want to eliminate.  Eliminate YOU!”

 

**Dogi assault you.** The fight begins, the crack in your heart still present.  The female collie, Dogaressa, points to your LV.  They look at each other with worry.  Dogamy checks you.

  
  


**(F/n)**

**AT-15 (+99 WPN BONUS)**

**DF-37**

**Won’t hurt a single dog.**

  
  


They seem relieved by the information, and you dodge their axes effortlessly.  The sign you saw before springs to your mind, and you hit the ground, rolling under the axes to avoid them.  

 

**You smell like a weird puppy.**  Well, there you go.  You ask them to sniff you again, and they smell you.

 

“Are you some kind of weird puppy?”  Dogaressa asks politly.

 

“I guess you could say that,” you say, petting her soft head.  She jumps.

 

“Can dogs pet other dogs…?!” she whispers in awe.

 

Dogamy nudges your hand with his snout.  “Well, don’t leave me out…”

 

You pet the dogs.

 

**Critical petting achieved!  The dogs’ minds have been expanded.**

 

They spare you, after discussing it between them.  They pat your head like you did the dogs’.  You suppose it’s endearing.  “Here you go, lost puppy!  Thank you for expanding our minds!”  They run off, talking about the fight together.  They were a cute couple.

 

You move on, discovering another kind of puzzle.  Turn every ‘x’ into an ‘o’ and you can press the switch?  Done and done.  Papyrus sees you and yells in surprise.  “WHAT?  HOW DID YOU AVOID MY TRAP?!  AND MORE IMPORTANTLY… IS THERE ANY LEFT FOR ME???”

 

“Yeah, you can probably get some if you want,” you say, thinking of the frozen plate.

 

He looks almost elated with joy.  “REALLY!?  WOWIE...  YOU RESISTED THE FLAVOR OF MY HOME COOKED PASTA, JUST SO YOU COULD SHARE IT WITH ME???”

 

_ Fuck.  He’s too cute. _  “Uhhh… suuuuuurrreeee….”

 

“FRET NOT, HUMAN!  I, MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS… WILL MAKE YOU ALL THE PASTA YOU COULD EVER WANT!”

 

“Well, thanks, Pap, because I love pasta,” you say, and his eye sockets widen.  “What?”

 

“YOU… YOU GAVE ME A NICKNAME, HUMAN!  ISN’T THAT ONLY SOMETHING THAT FRIENDS DO…?” he asks, almost hesitantly.

 

You look at him in confusion.  “Uh, yeah.  Aren’t we friends…?  Are we not…?”

 

He looked at you like all his dreams came true.  “YES… YES!!!  THANK YOU HUMAN!  AH… WHAT IS YOUR NAME, THOUGH…?  SO I MAY MAKE YOU AN EQUALLY IMPRESSIVE NICKNAME!” he asks.

 

You tell him, and ask him to walk with you.  How adorable of him, to try so hard to impress you with pasta.  You were a sucker for italian food.  “MY BROTHER STARTED A SOCK COLLECTION RECENTLY…” he begins, sounding deep in thought.  “HOW SADDENING… SOMETIMES I WONDER WHAT HE WOULD DO… WITHOUT SUCH A COOL GUY TAKING CARE OF HIM???  AH, HERE WE ARE!” he says, bringing you to a Papyrus shaped puzzle.

 

“HOW DO I PUT THIS, (F/N)... YOU WERE TAKING A LONG TIME TO ARRIVE, SO I TRIED TO IMPROVE UPON MY ALREADY GREAT PUZZLE BY MOVING THE SNOW TO LOOK LIKE MY FACE!”  Oh, that’s why it looked like him.  “NOW THE SOLUTION IS DIFFERENT!” he tells, looking around.  “AND AS USUAL, MY LAZY BROTHER IS NO WHERE TO BE FOUND!  I SUPPOSE WHAT I AM SAYING IS…” he pauses for dramatic effect, placing his hand on his chest, trying to schmooze.  “I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL SOLVE THIS CONUNDRUM!  IN THE MEANTIME, FEEL FREE TO TRY AND SOLVE THE PUZZLE YOURSELF!”

 

You solve it in 30 seconds flat.  It was fairly easy, to be honest.  Puzzles were something you were fond of at home, solving crosswords and sudoku easily from the newspaper every week.  “WOW!  YOU SOLVED IT SO QUICK!  I AM VERY IMPRESSED, (F/N)!  YOU MUST LOVE PUZZLES ALMOST AS MUCH AS I DO!  THE NEXT PUZZLE MIGHT EVEN BE TO EASY FOR YOU!” he says with a laugh, looking at you like you were his world.  It was very flattering.

 

You moved on together, nodding at Sans, who greeted you both on the other side.  Sans and Papyrus bickered as you made it to the next puzzle, revealing gray platforms.

 

“STAY HERE, (F/N)!  YOU MAY COMPLETE IT SOON!” Papyrus asks you, moving to the other side with Sans, as you wait patiently.  “THIS PUZZLE WAS INVENTED BY THE GREAT DR. ALPHYS!  THE BEST PART, IS IT IS ENTIRELY RANDOM!  NOT EVEN I WILL KNOW THE ANSWER, SO DON’T TRY TO CHEAT AND ASK FOR HELP!”  Soon, he was piling your mind high with talk of changing tiles.  You didn’t want to seem rude and tell him you didn’t understand, so you let him throw the switch.  The tiles flashed for a moment, before becoming a clean path of pink and red.  That could  _ not _ be a coincidence.  Papyrus was unavailable, as he soon ran away to the town, twirling about.

 

Moving past Sans, you see a plethora of snow dogs, all with long necks.  A cow monster in purple pants tells you about the dog you’d pet earlier was trying to make the perfect snow dog.

 

It fills you with DETERMINATION.

 

A sign nearby tells you to pet a dog.  You decide you will.  Going down below an ice puzzle, you find a snow Papyrus with enormous biceps, and a lump of snow with ‘sans’ written on it in red marker.  You chuckle at the two snow sculptures.  

 

It takes you a few times to solve the ice puzzle, but when you do, you slide along, some snow falling in your hair into the shape of a hat.  You brush it off.  Moving on, you find a deer creature looking unhappy, trying to scrape some decorations off it’s horns.  “Here, let me get those for you,” you ask, pulling the decorations off.

 

It looks at you gratefully.  “Thanks, friend,” it says, but still looks sad.  You give it a Nice Cream you bought earlier to cheer it up.  It reads the happy message and smiles.  “Thanks again, pal!” it says more genuinely this time.  You spare it, getting no money.  You’re okay with that, you have enough for a while.

 

You discover another dog, looking behind a snow poff.  It seems rather small, but soon an enormous body of armor with puppy faces comes up from the snow.  You give it a startled fetch, but soon you give it a pet after beckoning it.  After some petting, you play for a bit, praising it with some petting.  Eventually, you spare him, and the dog reveals itself to be a pomeranian in a large battle armor suit, and it licks your face, before making the armor move away to the east.  

 

Moving further east, you find Papyrus and Sans at the end of a long bridge.  You wave, and they wave back, Papyrus enthusiastically, and Sans with a tiny wave, putting his hand almost immediately back into his pocket.  “(F/N)!  THIS IS YOUR FINAL AND MOST DANGEROUS CHALLENGE YET!  BEHOLD: THE GAUNTLET OF DEADLY TERROR!” he cries, revealing a canon, a flamethrower, a pair of spears, a medieval mace, and… a dog on a rope.  Well.  At least it looked happy up there.  Papyrus begins to describe all the terrible things the gauntlet will do.  You feel a little fearful honestly.  You didn’t really want to do this puzzle.  It actually seemed dangerous!

 

Papyrus moves to activate the puzzle, but falters at your nervous stare.  He looks at the weapons and pauses.

 

“what’s the matter, bro?” Sans asks like he knows the answer.

 

You do too.  You look at him sadly.  “NOTHING, THIS JUST… IT SEEMS TOO EASY!  I’M A SKELETON WITH STANDARDS!  MY PUZZLES ARE VERY FAIR, AND MY TRAPS EXPERTLY COOKED!  THIS IS FAR TOO DIRECT TO BE A GOOD PUZZLE!  NO CLASS AT ALL!  FORGET ABOUT THIS, (F/N), I WILL PROVIDE A BETTER ONE IN THE FUTURE, I PROMISE!” Pap replies, and sighs with relief when the weapons and dog go away.  He spies you staring.  “WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT!?  THIS IS ANOTHER DECISIVE VICTORY FOR PAPYRUS!  NYEH!  HEH.  HEH???” he says and chuckles puzzlingly.

 

You cross the bridge safely.  “Phew,” you say to Sans.  “He almost scared me for a second”.

 

Sans shrugs and replies, “I don’t really know what my brother’s going to do now, but if i were you, i’d make sure i understand blue attacks okay?”  He wanders away, finished with his business.

 

You enter a town.  WELCOME TO SNOWDIN a sign reads nearby. 

 

The sight of such a small town being so friendly to each other….

  
It fills you with DETERMINATION.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Blindness is common is huskies, so that's the kind of dog I made Doggo. I just assumed he's only partially blind, so he can see the shifting in light to tell when something is moving. I thought it would be funny if Lesser dog was a shiba and the Dogi were collies.


	3. Papyrus! At The Disco

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fight with Papyrus and learning control.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning for murder, abortion, referenced rape (but not exactly told, but I'm telling you now), and PTSD

One of the first things you see is a shop and an inn.  You decide anywhere is a good place to start, so you check the shop, putting out your cigarette in the snow, and trash the end inside the shop.  A pale mauve rabbit woman greets you when the door rings.  “Hi!  Welcome to Snowdin Town!  I can’t remember the last time I saw a fresh face around here!” she smiles and scrunches her nose.  “Where did you come from?  The capital?”

 

“Uh, no,” you hesitantly deny.

 

She frowns in concentration.  “Hotland or Waterfall then?”  You have no idea where those two places are.

 

“No, I’m from the Ruins actually,” you say, and she flattens her ears in surprise.

 

“Wow, I thought that place was locked up… Are there actually monsters in there?” she asks.

 

You nod.  “Yeah, me and my best friend live there with some Froggits and Whimsuns.  Some spiders are there too.  She takes care of the Ruins.  I wanted to see some more of the Underground, so I left,” you tell her.

 

She nods, like this is perfectly common.  “Wow, that’s neat.  Did you want to buy anything?  I carry a lot of different items, most of them are useful, but some of them… don’t really make sense”.

 

“Like what?”

 

She looks around, and pulls out from behind the counter… a box of tampons.  “I really don’t get what these are,” she says conversationally.

 

“Actually, I think I’ll get those,” you say, putting 12 gold on the counter.

 

The rabbit scrutinizes you.  “What are you going to use them for, if you don’t mind my asking?”

 

You squirm under her gaze.  You suddenly remember something you read in a history book once.  “In case I get hurt, it can hold my bl- I mean dust in,” you tell her, cursing your slight falter.  You remember in a war that soldiers originally used them for bullet wounds, before the nurses began to use them.

 

She widens her eyes.  “Wow, I hadn’t thought of that!  That’s a good idea”.  You mentally pump your fist.  She eyes you in consideration.  “Y’know, my sister runs the Inn next door.  If you’re looking to bunk somewhere, that might be your best bet, but I hear it’s pretty noisy since these other monsters from Waterfall moved here.  How about a free pair of earplugs?”

 

You nod gratefully, taking them.  “Any coffee?” you ask, and all she can produce is a can of instant.  The expiration date is rubbed off.  You try not to think about it.  You leave and head back out into the cold air after saying goodbye to the bunny Diana, who you now learned the name of after chatting a bit more and buying a few Cinnamon Bunnies for the road.  Normally, you wouldn’t be so social, but the monsters that you’d met were generally pretty harmless.

 

You decide to save the Inn for last, checking what else there was to see.  In the center of town, there’s a huge Christmas tree with a blue bear in a red coat organizing the presents by name.  He tells you about a couple of monsters decorating another monster’s tree like horns, and how their tradition now was to give gifts under a decorated tree.  You now understood the antlered monster’s plight.

 

Moving on, you wave at an armless lizard monster, who bounces on it’s tail and waves a foot at you happily.  You smile.  They were a cute kid.  They trotted up to you, speaking excitedly.  “Yo!!  Are you new around here?  That’s so cool!  I’m MK!” it squeaked, lifting its tail for you to shake.  You smile a little, taking the tail lightly.  “Hey, uh, my parents don’t really know I’m here, but you won’t tell them, right?  You seem like the kind of monster that knows what’s good, huh?” he asks shuffling his feet guiltily.

 

You can get that better than a lot of people.  “How about I don’t say anything if you show me around?  I am pretty new,” you ask as a bargain, and his eyes get enormous sparkles and nod their head, a bow on their head flapping.

 

“Yeah!!  Yeah, that’d be so much fun!  Man, I’ve never had to show anyone around before!  Did you already see the Inn and the Town Shop?  I like Ms. Diana.  Sometimes she gives me free lollipops to ‘stop loitering in her shop’ or something.  What’s ‘loitering’ mean?” he speaks while he trots to what seems to be a bar.

 

“To stop being so awesome in her shop,” you dismissively say, not wanting to hurt a kid’s feelings.  Curse your soft heart.

 

“Wow!  She must want me to be awesome everywhere else!  Man, I knew it!” he cheers, gesturing to the bar.  You managed to stay off your flask at the Ruins because you were still healing and had a concussion, but you really wanted a drink.  “This is Grillby’s.  It’s the only restaurant in town, so it’s the best!  Man, this place has great fries, and Grillbz is really nice too.  You’ll probably really like him!”

 

You think you’d like anyone if they gave you a drink right now.  You follow MK northern after passing a few monsters who waved.  You had no idea there were so many different kinds of monsters.  MK points north with his foot to a snow-covered dock.  “That ways the Boatgoer’s point.  They’ll take you places if you ask, but they don’t come to Snowdin all that often,” he says, and then points to an enormous dark gray wolf throwing huge blocks of ice into the water, letting the swell of icy water carry it away.  Dang, that wolf was eye candy if you ever saw it.  Broad chests were a weak spot of yours.  “That’s Ice Wolf!  He’s reaaaally strong!  If I never get to be as strong as someone like  _ her _ than I want to be as strong as Ice Wolf!  He takes the ice off the roads and throws them in the water, so that Waterfall can have cold water and no one slips as much!  Man, isn’t that cool?!” MK says animatedly.

 

Ice Wolf must have heard him, because he pauses to flex, lifting a huge piece of ice in the air, posing dramatically.  His pecs swelled with his biceps.  You wolf whistle to him in amusement, making his ears perk and eyebrows lift.  He tosses the piece of ice into the harbor, and waves before continuing work.  “Ha ha!  I think he likes you!”

 

“Cool.  What’s next?”  He jumps at your question, running a bit too fast, slipping on an icy patch of snow, and falls to the ground face first.  You rush up and help him up.  “Aw sh- I mean, are you okay, Shorty?  That was a hard fall!” you say, trying not to curse in front of a little kid.

 

He gets up like it didn’t even happen and nods a little less quick.  “Yeah, don’t worry about it, man!  It happens all the time.  That happens when you don’t have arms, I guess…” he says a little sadly.

 

You get an idea.  “Why not wear a helmet?” you suggest.

 

His eyes light up.  “Maybe I can find one at the Dump!  Wow, that’s really smart!  Are you a scientist like my big sis Alphys!?  She’s the  _ Royal _ Scientist!  I’m really proud of her, even if I don’t see her as often”.

 

“Nah, I just- wait, the Dump?  Don’t go through someone’s trash, MK, that’s nasty,” you say, nose wrinkling.  

 

He looks at you startled.  “But everyone does!  That’s how we found out about cell phones and stuff,” he says looking puzzled.  You get the feeling you aren’t talking about the same thing.

 

“What do you mean ‘everyone does’?” you ask.

 

MK leads you to a ‘LIBRARBY’.  “The Dump is in Waterfall.  That’s over there,” he explains, pointing past a house with rainbow lights on it.  “Sometimes humans on the surface lose things and it washes down here from a river or something.  Man, we find all kinds of cool stuff!  Sis likes these weird cartoons a lot, but I like the soccer balls and hacky sacks.  Alphys showed me all the coolest places to find things, and what could be used!  Isn’t my sis the coolest, dude?”

 

“Yeah,” you say agreeing.  “She sounds pretty cool.  I like cartoons too.  Maybe I’ll see her there sometime…” you say trailing off.

 

MK points his toes at the building.  “Anyway dude, this is the Library.  They spelled the sign wrong, though.  I think my essay on funerals is in there.  I had to do it for school.  You can probably learn all about the town in there,” he says before moving on to the house with rainbow lights.  “Those skeletons that moved in a while ago live there!  They’re pretty cool, especially that one that’s friends with Undyne!  She doesn’t always come here since she doesn’t like the cold a lot.  I wish she’d come more often,” he squeals with praise, falling again.  

 

“Who’s Undyne?” you ask helping him up.

 

His eyes get big and his jaw drops.  “ _ You don’t know who Undyne is?!?!   _ She’s only the coolest, toughest, most awesome person  _ ever _ !  She’s the Head of the Royal Guard!  She’s so strong, she suplexes boulders for no reason!  I want to join the Royal Guard someday, just so she can teach me to be tough like her, yo!” MK replies loudly, bouncing on his tail

 

You feel a knot in your stomach.  The Royal Guard was why those dogs had stopped you, and if this ‘Undyne’ was really as strong as MK was saying… you hoped you wouldn’t have to meet her anytime soon.

 

Your stomach growled.  MK laughed at you before his did the same and he blushed.  “Wow, uh… I guess we’re both pretty hungry, huh dude?”

 

You snort, and motion to the bar.  “C’mon, tough-guy.  I’ll spot you some fries,” you say, and his eyes sparkle again.  This kid was just too precious.  

 

“Wow!!  Thanks dude!!” he cheers, skipping all the way to Grillby’s, humming.

 

You open the door to the bar, finding it rather cozy.  It had a warm atmosphere, lights all orange and yellow.  You noticed a large surplus of dogs on the left.  You stopped, recognizing a few.  You waved at Dogamy and Dogaressa, who were petting each other while being caught in a poker game with Greater Dog and Doggo.  They waved back happily.  You gave Greater Dog and Doggo a wave as well, and encouraged Doggo to get that spiked collar that he wanted.  Somewhere along the way, you agreed to walking all four dogs after you left, and joined the game after Dogamy and Dogaressa invited you, telling you about their day.  Glancing at the bar, you decided you’d rather not drink in front of a kid.

 

You find out that the fries are about 15 gold each, so you give MK 42g to give to the flaming bartender.  MK’s eyes grow wide at the sight of the large mass of gold in your coin purse.  “You didn’t tell me you were rich!  You were holding out on me, yo!” he whispers looking at you like you were the coolest person ever.  

 

You blush, not used to people treating you like someone to be admired.  “Heh.  No sweat kid,” you tell him.  He gives the coins to the bartender, who shoots you a grateful nod.  You raise a hand in a friendly gesture.  He brings back some fries that MK expertly brings by balancing them on his head.  “You’re pretty good at that,” you compliment, showing him how to play, both of you deciding to bluff this turn.

 

He blushes as Dogamy and Dogaressa fold, and the other two dogs hesitantly putting more chips in.  You had a really shitty hand, but monsters seemed to hate lying when it came to anything.  You ate the fries reverently.  They were the best you ever had.  Eventually, you won the game, making the dogs howl in despair as you showed your shit hand.  You offered half of your winnings to MK, whose eyes grew wide.  “What!?  You’re giving it to me!?  Thanks, dude!  You’re so nice!” he says wiggling.  You rub your head, a little embarrassed and the dogs give you an admiring look.

 

“You take very good care of him,” Dogaressa compliments.

 

“He’s always running around with no one watching him,” Dogamy continues.

 

“It’s nice that you’re…”

 

“Watching out for him,” they say together.

 

You smile a little and say nothing.  You lost the next two games to Greater Dog, who seemed to have an affinity for the game, howling when he won.  You beckoned the dogs out with you for a walk, waving goodbye to MK, who said he’d be in Waterfall tomorrow, if you wanted to visit.

 

You lit another cigarette, offering a light to Doggo who started another dog treat as well.  You both blew a few clouds of smoke, one smelling like kibble.  “I didn’t know dogs could walk other dogs,” Dogamy said in wonder.

 

“You can do anything you set your mind to,” you say shrugging.  The dog's eyes go wide.

 

“That’s very wise,” Dogaressa said, smiling a fanged smile that was surprisingly friendly.

 

You shrug again, and talked with them some more, walking around town for a bit, before you decided to head over to the Inn.  You waved goodbye to the dogs, them giving a friendly round of barks as you stepped in.

 

“Welcome to Snowed Inn!” a creamy bunny stated with a smile.  “My sister told me to reserve you a room!  I’m Kara,” she introduced.

 

“(F/n),” you replied gratefully.  “Is all your family in customer service?” you ask curiously.

 

She gives you a key to a room.  “Just me, Diana, and my brother who owns a Nice Cream stand.  My other brother is in the Royal Guard in Hotland.  Call if you need anything,” she says, gesturing to the stairs.

 

You nod, heading to your room, you find a bed.  You ring up Toriel, but no one answers, so you leave a message.  You tell her all about the place.  You tell her about the wacky skeleton brothers and about the dogs, and you tell her you miss her very much.

 

You hang up, and get into a large shirt and your underwear and are about to sleep, but you hear loud snores coming through the paper thin walls.  You remember the ear plugs, and send a quick blessing to the purple rabbit, and slip them into your ears.  As soon as you hit the pillow, your exhaustion hits you.  You did a lot today.  You don’t even register falling asleep.

  
  


_ You feel sick to your stomach, and a burn on your forehead. _

 

_ “Wake up, slut.  Make me breakfast,” He says.  He stomps out of the room. _

 

_ You hope he dies. _

 

_ You shift.  You’re staring at him, tears pricking your eyes, but you refuse to cry.  His eyes glare at you, spittle running down his snarl.  “Ungrateful little fuck!  You think anyone cares about you out there?!  You think you’re strong enough?!  You can’t even stand up to me!” he yells, striking your face, your back bleeding onto the floor.  You don’t make a sound.  He likes it more when you scream.  You grit your teeth.  You want to die. _

 

_ It shifts again.  She’s there this time, pleading with him, suitcase thrown to the side by him.  Her stomach is swollen with unborn life. _

 

_ Now she’s on the ground, her stomach convulsing, her face bloodied and bruised, leg broken to the side.  She won’t make it.  She’s suffering.   _

 

_ You want to do the right thing. _

 

_ You take the bat you hide under your bed. _

 

_ There is no right thing. _

 

_ You swing as hard as you can. _

 

_ He’s staring at you, face mutilated.  His mouth gurgles words around the carnage. _

 

_ “You better run, little rabbit”. _

  
  


You wake up lungs frozen in terror, tears falling from your eyes.  You force yourself to breathe heavily, trying to even your breath.  You can’t sleep.  You wipe your tears with the blanket.  You check the clock.  6:06 AM.  At least it’s a little more reasonable than last time.  You take an hour to collect yourself and use the bathroom, washing your red eyes.  You throw on some clothes and head out, eating a cinnamon bunny and finishing up an instant coffee.  It’s disgusting, but the cinnamon bun makes up for it.

 

It’s almost dead silent outside, the only noise coming from the ice conveyor where Ice Wolf is still throwing ice.  You wander over to him, getting an idea.  “Oi!  Ice Wolf!” you call, and he glances over.

 

“Hello.  You are the flirtatious monster from yesterday, correct?” he rumbles in a husky voice.  He uses a towel on his hands and shuts the conveyor belt off.  “Can I help you?”

 

You walk to him, putting your empty cup in your bag, brushing off your hands with some snow.  “Yeah, do you mind if I practice my attacks on that ice before you throw it?  My attacks are too strong, and I want to tone it down a bit,” you ask, and he nods thoughtfully.

 

“Yes, a common problem.  Come back here, and I can help you,” he says, opening a gate in the fence.  You follow him back, and he sets an ice block on the ground.  He demonstrates with a quick punch, making a large crater in the ice, but leaving it mostly together.  “The trick is to keep it mostly together.  You try, yes?”  He puts a second block of ice on the ground, and throws the other into the bay.

 

You take out your knife, and slice the ice expecting to bounce off of it, but instead, you cut right through it, and the top half falls off.  Ice Wolf looks just as surprised as you.  “Oh my.  You really  _ are  _ strong, aren’t you?”

 

“I guess so,” you say.

 

“You are stronger than you think,” Ice Wolf contemplates.  “...It’s too bad the tall skeleton brother is not here.  His control is impeccable.  I’ve never seen anyone with as much control as him,” he says placing another ice block down, and tossing the two halves.

 

“You mean Papyrus…?” you ask, surprised.

 

He nodded his wolfish head.  “He often teaches the children sometimes.  I’ve seen him use a normal attack and not hit a single HP off.  Truly impressive, no?”  You attack again, thinking on this.  The block is cut in half again.  You start on another.

 

“Perhaps you should try to think of someone you do not want to hurt?” Ice Wolf suggested.  “It may weaken your attacks”.

 

You think back to your fight with Toriel.  You don’t want to hurt anyone you care about like that again.  You hit.  To your surprise, the attack cuts through only until the last inch of ice.  Ice Wolf nods in approval.  “Good.  Still too powerful, but good.  Try again, yes?” he says, breaking the ice over his knee and gives you another.  You slice again, concentrating hard on the people you’ve met, who hardly knew you but were so kind.  

 

The married guard collies.   _ Slice. _  A larger chunk of ice is left.

 

MK, the kid with no arms, and how he looked at you like you were the world.   _ Slash. _  The space grows even bigger.

 

The skeleton brothers teasing each other, Sans giving you a wink, and Papyrus looking dazzled as you solved his puzzle.   _ Slice. _  Even larger now.  Your knuckles are white gripping the knife.

 

You think of Toriel, not noticing you in the hall, when she gripped a green and yellow striped sweater to her face, smelling it, tears falling from her eyes.  You don’t ever want her to cry.   _ Slash _ .  Your knife barely breaks an inch through the ice.

 

“Stop!” Ice Wolf says.  “You’ve done very well.  You may go, but come back if you ever want to practice.  My ice will always be ready to serve,” he says proudly grinning.  

 

You give him a friendly smack on his shoulder.  “Thanks, Icy, you helped a lot.  I think I get it now,” you say with a grin, huffing a little.  He blushes through his fur, scratching the back of his ears.  He waves you away, turning the ice conveyor back on.

 

Looking around, you can’t see anything left for you to do.  You want to travel further, maybe check out the dump… You move to the eastern part of the town before an icy mist blurs your vision.  A figure is standing further away.  It looks so familiar… “Papyrus?  What are you doing here…?!” You question.

 

His shoulders hunch.  “HUMAN.  (F/N).  ALLOW ME TO TELL YOU ABOUT SOME COMPLEX FEELINGS,” he begins.  “FEELINGS LIKE… THE JOY OF FINDING ANOTHER PASTA LOVER.  THE ADMIRATION FOR ANOTHER’S PUZZLE SOLVING SKILLS.  THE DESIRE TO HAVE A COOL, SMART PERSON THINK YOU ARE COOL.  THESE FEELINGS… THEY MUST BE WHAT YOU ARE FEELING RIGHT NOW!!!” he says, still not showing his face.  You feel a little sorry for him.  You don’t really believe that he was talking about you.

 

“I CAN HARDLY IMAGINE WHAT IT MUST BE LIKE TO FEEL THAT WAY.  AFTER ALL, I AM VERY GREAT.  I DON’T EVER WONDER WHAT HAVING LOTS OF FRIENDS IS LIKE.  I PITY YOU... LONELY HUMAN…  WORRY NOT!  YOU SHALL BE LONELY NO LONGER!” he states turning to you.  His face is determined.  “I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL BE YOUR…” he hesitates.  You see him look to the ground.  He shakes his head.  “N-NO.  THIS IS ALL WRONG!  I CAN’T BE YOUR FRIEND!  YOU ARE A HUMAN!!!  I MUST CAPTURE YOU!  THEN, I CAN FULFILL MY LIFELONG DREAM!!!  POWERFUL, POPULAR, PRESTIGIOUS!  THAT’S PAPYRUS!  THE NEWEST MEMBER… OF THE ROYAL GUARD!!!”

 

Your soul comes out of your chest.  You jump in surprise as he swings a large bone around, and clears the mist.  The thought of hurting your dear friend…

 

Makes you very unhappy.  You don’t bother to take out your knife.  You frown.

 

Papyrus’s eyes widen as he sees your LV.  “HUMAN…” he says softly.  “WHAT DID YOU DO…?”  He checks you

  
  


**(F/n)**

**AT-15**

**DF-37**

**Won’t break any bones today.**

  
  


You spare him.  “Why are you fighting me?  I’m not a danger to my friends anymore,” you plead.

 

“HOW… HOW DID YOU GET SUCH A HIGH AMOUNT OF LOVE…?”

 

He throws some bones behind you.  You know he won’t hurt you.  

 

“HUMAN…

 

“WHO DID YOU KILL…?”

 

Your breath catches.

 

**You feel the weight of your decisions on your neck.**

 

“Papyrus… please don’t make me fight you.  Let’s just go home, okay?”  There’s tears pricking your eyes.  You are so tired.

 

He swings more bones behind you, and you dodge a little slower than you usually did.  “YOU DON’T HAVE ANY DUST ON YOU, SO IT WAS NOT A MONSTER… DID YOU… WAS IT A HUMAN YOU KILLED?” he asked looking at you sadly.

 

**You feel your past tracing the scars on your back.**

 

Your hands shake.  “I won’t hurt you, Papyrus.  I won’t ever hurt you,” you say.  You stay determined.  His attacks slow.  “You don’t understand, Papyrus.   _ He  _ was going to kill me…  There wasn’t anything I could do to save them…” You let him hit you.  Your HP falls to 53/52.  He hits you again.  52/52.  “Papyrus, if you won’t spare me… you’re going to have to kill me”.  His eyes widen.  He opens his jaw, but you interrupt.  “I came here prepared to die, Papyrus.  I expected it.  I would rather die here, than be taken to the capital.  I’m not going to give up just because you want to be in the Royal Guard.  I want to continue whatever relationship we have, but if you must kill me, you may do what you must”.

 

You know he won’t kill you.  He’s too nice.  He’s nothing like  _ him _ .  Papyrus falters.  “I… I… SHOOT, HUMAN.  I DON’T WANT TO KILL YOU… I DON’T WANT ANYONE TO KILL ANYBODY!  I WANT US TO BE FRIENDS, BUT…” he looks at the ground.  “IT… IT WAS DEFENSE, WASN’T IT?  WHO EVER YOU KILLED… THEY WEREN’T A GOOD PERSON, WERE THEY…?” he asks, resigned.

 

You feel heavy.  “No… no they weren’t.  I don’t want to kill anyone any more… and especially not hurt you of all people Papyrus…” you rasp.  You feel like your mouth is full of dust, like when you held Toriel’s dusting body.  “You and Sans… you’re both so special to me.  You’re some of the first people that’s ever been so nice to me.  Just… spare me.  Please…”

 

Papyrus eyed the  **Mercy** key.  “I… I CANNOT HURT A FRIEND.  ESPECIALLY NOT SOMEONE WHO DESPERATELY NEEDS TO RELEARN HOW TO BE GOOD”.  He spares you.  The fight ends.  “YOU ARE STILL A GOOD PERSON, (F/N).  I BELIEVE YOU ARE JUST IN A BAD SITUATION.  WHY DON’T YOU… COME AND LET ME TRAIN YOU HOW TO BE GOOD?” he says, and you take his hand.

 

“Thanks, Pap.  I… I’m really glad that we can be friends,” you say, squeezing his hand.  His cheeks flush yellow.

 

“F-FLIRTING, ARE YOU?  WELL, SANS WILL BE A BIT DISAPPOINTED THAT HE DIDN’T GET TO YOU FIRST.  THAT’S WHAT HE GETS FOR BEING A LAZY BONES, I GUESS!” he laughs shakily.

 

You eye him suspiciously.  “What do you mean… ‘get me first’...?”

 

He smiles.  “WE TALKED ABOUT YOU LAST NIGHT AT DINNER!  WE BOTH AGREED THAT IF YOU WERE TO STAY, WE SHOULD TAKE YOU FOR A DATE!  IS THAT OKAY… HUMAN?  WE WERE GOING TO ASK TOGETHER, BUT I LET SLIP TOO SOON… IT MUST BE YOUR CHARMS!”

 

You falter.  “Both of you… want to date me… at the same time…?”

 

“YES, DO HUMANS NOT DO THAT…?”

 

You think of a way to phrase it.  “Some do, but most people… never mind, it doesn’t matter.  I’d love to go on a date… with both of you,” you say with a smile.  They were both quite lovely for people you’d just met, and you’d never been so easily charmed.

 

Papyrus cheers and picks you up, spinning you.  “HUMAN!  YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND HOW HAPPY THAT MAKES US FEEL!  I DON’T UNDERSTAND SANS’S EITHER, BUT I AM DELIGHTED!  WE MUST TELL HIM IMMEDIATELY!  LET’S GO TO MY HOUSE RIGHT NOW!” he says, carrying you bridal style through the snow.

 

The thought of knowing you will one day go on a date with two cute skeletons….

  
It fills you with DETERMINATION.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is going to be the last consistent chapter for a while, since I've got classes for the next while. I'll try and get the next chapter out as soon as I can, but it probably won't be for a few weeks. If you happen to make fan art or a playlist for this, feel free to send it to my tumblr: arsenicpencils.tumblr.com I'd really love to see it!


	4. Get On My LV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus training and you fucking finally get the drink you deserve.

 

 “Uh, P-Papyrus…?” you ask huffing with a desperate need to fill your lungs.

 

“YES, WHAT IS IT HUMAN?”

 

“I’m kinda worn out… can we stop for today…?  O-or at least take a break…?”

 

He scoffs.  “NONSENSE, (F/N)!  WE’VE BARELY STARTED AND YOU ARE ALL OUT OF BREATH?”

 

“Yeah, but we’ve been going for hours now!” you groan, muscles sore.  “I’m not in as good of shape as you are!”

 

He frowns, and continues moving, you following behind sloppily.  “VERY WELL,” he says grudgingly.  “LAST LAP!  ONE MORE TIME WITH FEELING!” he cries jogging ahead of you.  

 

Papyrus had demanded a timed run around Snowdin… with no specific time set.  While complimenting yourself.  It was just until ‘THE FEELINGS SINK IN’ he’d said.

 

You grunted and pulled yourself onward, glad you’d left your coat back at Papyrus’s in change with a long-sleeve shirt.  Papyrus at the very least had the generosity to slow his pace a little to keep you with him.  You weren’t out of shape by any means, having gone running routinely around your town, and occasionally jumping rooftops at the more urban side of the city, but running for so long was really wearing on you.

 

“NOW, HUMAN!!” cried Papyrus with feeling.  “LET FLY YOUR COMPLIMENTS!”

 

“I’m pretty good at playing ukulele…” you say puffing.  You should really lay off the cigarettes.  You’re going to die from suffocation.

 

“GOOD!  AGAIN!!”

 

“I can make really good pie…?” you attempt.  True, you’d only helped Toriel once or twice, but… it’d turned out okay.

 

“ALRIGHT, ONCE MORE!!  THIS IS THE LAST TIME!!” he cries as you draw up to their house.  “I-I’m a mostly alright person,” you attempt.  You tried to, at least.  

 

Papyrus huffs in annoyance as you place your hands behind your head to breathe.  The cold air was sharp on your lungs.  “WELL, THAT LAST ONE WAS AT LEAST AN ATTEMPT… I CAN TELL THAT YOU’RE REALLY TRYING, HUMAN!  WE SHOULD TRY AGAIN TOMORROW!  THEN WE CAN DO MY FAVORITE… BATTLE TRAINING!!!”

 

You pant.  “Sounds great, Pap,” you reply, genuinely interested.  You hadn’t really gotten to really face Papyrus.  Not when he was trying his hardest, at least.  He’d been too interested in trying to figure you out.  You were so bothered that you’d not really thought to pay attention to his way of attacking.  

 

“HUMAN?  WHY ARE YOU ALL… STICKY…?” Papyrus asked, looking concerned.  

 

You looked down, noticing sweat soaking through the shirt in your armpits.  Great.  You hoped they had a shower.  “It’s how humans keep themselves at a consistent temperature.  All it means is that I’m too hot and I need to cool down”.

 

He relaxes and gives a nervous grin.  “THANK GOODNESS!  I ALMOST THOUGHT YOU WERE MELTING!  THAT’S GOOD!  MONSTERS DO THAT TOO SOMETIMES, BUT I DIDN’T KNOW HUMANS DID TOO.” he opens the front door.

 

“Hey, do you guys have a shower here?” you ask.

 

Papyrus nods eagerly.  “YES, AS A MATTER OF FACT, WE DO!  IT’S UPSTAIRS TO THE IMMEDIATE LEFT.  YOU CAN USE SOME OF UNDYNE’S SHAMPOO!  I’M SURE SHE WOULDN’T MIND, AS LONG AS WE DON’T EVER TELL HER!  NYEH HEH HEH!” Papyrus laughs.  “FEEL FREE TO USE MY ROBE!  OR MY BROTHER’S, I GUESS, BUT HIS ALWAYS SMELLS LIKE KETCHUP AND HAS MUSTARD PACKETS IN THE POCKETS…” he says trailing off, before heading into the kitchen and clattering around with pots and pans, presumably to make spaghetti.

 

Grabbing your bag off the couch, you head up the stairs, heading to the left and opening the door.  The bathroom is meticulously cleaned and a pleasing shade of pale purple, with a huge orange robe with a tiger hood, ears, muzzle, and all.  You’re assuming it’s Papyrus’s.  On the floor is a plain blue one with a no waist-tie.  Sure enough, there’s packets of condiments in the pockets along with a hand buzzer, and a small snail figurine.  It looks well taken care of.  You bet Toriel would like one like that.  You’ll have to ask Sans where he got it from.

 

Looking in the actual shower, you part the shower curtain with rubber duckies printed on it.  Inside was an orange rubber duck dressed as a ninja, and the other was a blue ball.  It was easy to guess which belonged to who.  Setting your bag down, you turn the water on and get undressed while you wait for it to heat up.  You adjust the temperature idly and walk in.  It’s pleasantly warm.  It felt like you hadn’t showered in years.  

 

As you scrub shampoo that isn’t yours into your hair, you are suddenly hit with just how tired you are.  Your muscles ache from the training with Ice Wolf, and even more so with your ‘run’ with Papyrus.  Despite it all, you’ve never been more comfortable with an ache.  It’s a peaceful feeling and you let the warm water roll over you.  You shake yourself out of the moment, rinsing the shampoo and conditioner from your hair, and after examining some ‘bone wax’ you decide that the seaweed scented body wash would be your best bet, even if it would make you smell like sushi.

 

Stepping out, you change clothes, grabbing a long shirt and shorts as pajamas.  It was a short walk to the inn, so you could make it alright, as long as you kept your coat drawn.  After pondering the tiger robe for a bit, you decided not to wear it.  Wandering downstairs, you catch Sans sleeping on the couch, a joke book over his eye sockets.  You never understood why people did that.  Was it to block out light?  Why not just turn off the light if it was bothering them so much?  You guess you’ll never understand.

 

You feel like he has the right idea though, and you take the opposite end of the couch, sighing as you sank into the shitty couch.  Papyrus comes in, and smiles.  “AH, (F/N)!  I SEE THAT MY BROTHER HAS DRAGGED YOU INTO HIS DOWNWARD SPIRAL OF LAZY.  WHAT A SHAME”.

 

“Heh.  No worries, Pap.  I’m just going to head back to the Inn.  I gotta sleep up if I want to be full of energy for tomorrow”.

 

He looks startled.  “YOU SLEEP IN THE INN?!  DON’T YOU HAVE ANYWHERE ELSE TO STAY?!”

 

You think of Toriel’s home in the Ruins.  “Yeah, but I don’t want to walk that far”.

 

He huffs.  “WHY NOT STAY HERE THEN?  YOU MAY BORROW OUR COUCH IF YOU LIKE?”

 

You shake your head firmly, thinking of your nightmare from last night.  The last thing you wanted was for you to wake up Papyrus and Sans (if you even could, that is) with your stupid hollerings over people that weren’t even alive anymore.  Besides: the skeleton brother’s house was colder than a witch’s tit in a brass bra.  “It’s alright, Papyrus.  I’ll be fine”.

 

Though Papyrus kept telling you he would like to keep you at their house, where he knew you were alright, you insisted on leaving.  However, he convinced you to eat dinner with them: spaghetti.  What a surprise.

 

Papyrus told you to wait in the living room with Sans while he cooked, firmly telling you that you were the guest, and you shouldn’t have to do anything.  After he left, there was a small pause, and you looked down at your legs.

 

What were you going to do from here?  You wanted to check out the dump, but you also wanted to hang out with the boys some more… You’d rarely felt more welcome than you had with them.  Sans’s idle way of making you feel welcomed, and the way Papyrus had ensnared you with horrible puzzles, as well as the way he simply accepted the way he… the situation with your LV.  It was really heartwarming.  

 

At that moment, your phone rang.  A goat bleat.  You answered it.  “Hey, Toriel.  What’s up?”

 

He voice crackled over your speakers.  “Hello, my friend!  I was merely checking up on you.  How are things on your part?”

 

“I have a date with two skeletons”.

 

“I’m guessing that you are well then?”

 

“I can honestly say, I have never felt better.  They’re both… really great, actually,” you say with a smile, looking over at Sans, who’s smile fell a little in his sleep, becoming more relaxed and natural.  “I’m about to have dinner with them actually.  It’s been really great in Snowdin.  I’m thinking about visiting Waterfall tomorrow, or maybe go and practice with one of my dates?  I… actually have more than one option that’s appealing now, and it’s pretty weird to me…”

 

Toriel is silent.  “Tori?  You still there?”

 

“... Yes, sorry about that, I was rather distracted by someone, who was actually one of the reasons I called you,” she says hesitantly.  “I’d really hate to intrude on plans, but this is rather urgent.  

 

“Yeah?” you say, straightening up.  “Is everything alright?”

 

“Oh!  Yes, everything’s been quite alright, It’s just been a little hectic around here.  A-Another human… has fallen down here,” Toriel says hesitantly.

 

You freeze with surprise.  “You look over to Sans to make sure he’s still sleeping.  It’s impossible to tell.  “Hold on a second, Tori,” you say with a shout to Papyrus that you’re going outside for a call.  Putting on your coat, you walk outside and sit on the steps.  You pull a cigarette out and light it, blowing some smoke.  “Are you sure, Tori?” you ask in a hushed voice.

 

She makes an irritated noise.  “ _ Yes, (F/n), I know what a human looks like _ ,” she says with a sigh.  “They do appear to be much younger than you though.  I believe they are a child”.

 

That was interesting.  You inhaled another puff of smoke, the end glowing bright in the deep blue night.  “Oh yeah?  How tall?”

 

“Barely to my knees”.

 

You hum.  “Yeah, right height for a kid.  What do you want me to do about it?”

 

You heard her shuffle.  “Truth be told, (F/n), I… don’t want to let them go.  Perhaps it is my motherly instinct, but I do love this child.  I was hoping that, if they wanted to leave, you would look after them in my stead,” she asks, voice soft and pleading.

 

Your throat closes.  You cough on your smoke a little.  Your lungs are tight in your chest.  “Well, hell Toriel, I don’t know anything about kids.  And shit, neither did my parents.  How am I supposed to look after a kid?  You saw my soul, I’m probably no good for them either.  You saw my LV,” you gripe, begrudgingly.  It was tough for you to talk about.  You knew there was something wrong with your soul, but you didn’t like the idea of something being wrong with you.  That meant that He was  _ right _ .

 

“(F/n), you know that’s not true,” she says with a firmness you’ve rarely heard from her.  “You are a wonderful person, just to be around!  You are my best friend, and I won’t stand for you talking that way about yourself.  You are the person that makes bad jokes, and gets upset when you trip on your own shoelaces, and threw flour at me while we were making a pie.   _ You are not  _ **_bad_ ** _ , (F/n) _ ”.

 

You felt tears prick your eyes.  You took a few more deep breaths of smoke, trying to calm down.  “...So when do you want me to come and get them?” you ask after a pause.  “And what am I going to tell everyone?  If you think that nobody’s going to question a little kid, suddenly appearing with me, then you’re just an idiot.  Am I supposed to be their sister?”

 

She snorts.  “No, you don’t look anything alike.  I already thought of that.  You’re going to be their aunt.  Monsters do have the tendency to look alike if they’re related,” she says.

 

You agree with the plan, before catching up with her on a bunch of other things about the human.  Apparently, the kid had called her up a few times, before hitting on her and then calling her ‘Mom’.  You’ve rarely laughed harder.  You bantered puns back and forth, before Papyrus came out to tell you that dinner was done.

 

“Looks great, Pap,” you said, seeing pasta with bright red spaghetti sauce.  It looked a little overcooked, and the marinara was a tad burnt and… was that glitter?  You hoped it was edible at least.  Sans had wandered off a little after you walked in, saying he was heading to Grillby’s.  

 

You took a bite and scrunched your nose.  Nope.  Not edible glitter.  Despite all, the sauce was pretty good, even with the entire platter being overcooked.  The glitter was a small price to pay for making Papyrus happy.  Papyrus looked on gleefully.  “SUCH A PASSIONATE EXPRESSION!  YOU MUST LOVE MY COOKING EVEN MORE THAN ME!!  MY COOKING LESSONS WITH UNDYNE MUST BE REALLY PAYING OFF!”

 

You continued to eat with a shrug, taking water from the canteen.  “Yeah, weren’t you supposed to capture me for her or something?”

 

He sweats, and looks nervously at his plate.  “WELL, YES, BUT YOU’RE MY FRIEND.  AS WELL AS MY DATE!  I CAN’T KNOWINGLY GIVE MY DATE TO THE ROYAL GUARD!” he shakes his head sadly.  “I… I DO FEEL BAD THAT I’M GOING TO HAVE TO LIE TO HER NOW… LYING TO YOUR FRIENDS IS NOT GOOD AT ALL…”

 

“Yeah, what’s she even want me for, anyway?”

 

He looks up.  “IT’S HOW WE’RE GOING TO BREAK THE BARRIER!  KING ASGORE WANTS TO OPEN THE BARRIER WITH SOUL POWER TO SET US ALL FREE!  YOU KNOW, I BET WITH A STRONG SOUL LIKE YOURS, THEN YOU COULD SET EVERYBODY FREE!!  AND THEN I CAN DRIVE DOWN LONG HIGHWAYS WITH THE SUN ON MY SKIN LIKE I’VE ALWAYS DREAMED!!”

 

You frown.  “You don’t- never mind.  But did you see my soul?  There’s obviously something wrong with it, as much as I hate to admit it.  I mean, seriously, what’s up with those cracks?”

 

Papyrus’s face softens and grows sad.  He takes your hand.  “I...I CAN TELL YOU’VE BEEN THROUGH MUCH, (F/N).  EVEN IF YOU WON’T TELL ME WHAT IT IS.  I COULD TELL WHEN YOU TOLD ME… WHAT YOU DID IN OUR BATTLE.  WHEN… WHEN MONSTERS HAVE BEEN THROUGH SOMETHING…. SOMETHING TERRIBLE, THEIR SOULS CRACK.  USUALLY, IT MEANS THAT IT’S TIME FOR THEM TO FALL DOWN, BUT…”

 

You fight the urge to pull your hand back.  “What’s ‘fallen down’ mean?”

 

“WHEN MONSTERS ARE READY TO TURN TO DUST… THEY FALL ASLEEP FOR A FEW DAYS… BEFORE THEY DUST.  BREAKING A MONSTER’S SOUL LIKE THAT…. IT BREAKS OUR ENTIRE BEING… THE FACT THAT YOU ARE STILL STANDING, HUMAN, IT MEANS THAT YOU MUST BE VERY STRONG.  IT’S INCREDIBLE THAT YOU AREN’T FALLEN YET… WHICH I AM VERY GRATEFUL FOR, BY THE WAY!!” he continues, smiling and squeezing your hand.

 

You frown.  “But that doesn’t explain how it happend... “

 

Papyrus looks thoughtful for a moment.  “MANY TIMES, IT’S BECAUSE OF SOMETHING THAT HAS HAPPENED TO SOMEONE, LIKE A FAMILY MEMBER FALLING, OR A LOVER… DID YOU MAYBE LOSE SOMEONE, HUMAN…?” he asks cautiously.

 

You can almost feel the bat in your hands.  You have a feeling you know what caused this.

 

Fuck.  You need a drink.

 

You pull your hand from him, and head to the door, grabbing your coat, and pulling it around your shorts and shirt.  “W-WHERE ARE YOU GOING (F/N)?!”

 

“Grillby’s.  I’ll be back with Sans”.

 

You hear a last protest before leaving.  It’s cold as dicks outside but you really don’t care.  You push the door open, and see Sans at the bar, chatting up the literal fire bartender.  You don’t really feel like talking, not after the talk with his brother, but you feel like it’d be even more awkward if you went somewhere else.  In the end, you sit next to him, watching him drink ketchup.  Gross, but whatever.  Who are you to judge?

 

He looks to you, lazy grin on his face.  “hey, how’d you manage dinner?”

 

“Fine.  He put glitter in the spaghetti”.

 

He chuckles.  “maybe he’ll make something edible one day”.  He turns to the fireman and puts a hand on his shoulder.  “grillz, this is (F/n).  (F/n), this is grillbz, one of the  _ hottest _ guys you’ll meet in the bar”.

 

You feel a slight curve to your lip.  “Nice to meet you officially, Grillbz,” you say, offering a hand.  You aren’t sure if he could burn your hand, but you don’t want to seem rude.  He nods, and takes your hand firmly.  He’s warm, like being near an open fire.  You’re disappointed when he lets go.  “So, can I get a glass of whiskey?”  Sans’s eye sockets widen marginally and sweat forms on his skull.  Grillbz remains as passive looking as ever, just a little more flickering that manages to look surprised.  “...What?  This is a bar, right…?”

 

Sans coughs.  “Yeah, but we didn’t know that people like you drank that stuff”.

 

You frown.  “What do you guys use it for then…?” you question. 

 

“Fuel,” Grillbz states plainly.  His voice is almost as low as Sans’s.

 

“we thought it was toxic,” Sans explains as Grillbz gives you a large bottle of whiskey.  You are absolutly going to buy the entire bottle.  “when monsters tried drinking it way back when, they threw it up.  looks like they couldn’t  _ stomach _ it”.

 

“Guess I have a tough stomach then.  Or you guys have a weaker stomach.  Whatever works.  Can I get some hot chocolate with this?” you ask.  Grillbz nods and heads to the back, and you pull out your flask to fill it up, very carefully.

 

“do humans really drink that?  it tastes awful,” Sans asks, as Grillbz comes out with a huge, steaming mug.  

 

“Yup,” you say.  “It’s technically a type of weak poison, but it makes you feel good, so nobody really gives a damn,” you explain, pouring the alcohol into the flask to the brim.  Grillbz holds the mug in his hands, before it begins to boil.  You raise your eyebrows.  Neat.  “That’s pretty neat, Grillz”.  He turns a little blue in the cheeks, and hastily gives you your cocoa, before picking up a glass to clean it.

 

You dump a generous portion into the cocoa, before taking two shots quickly from the bottle.  It burns your throat and sits comfortably warm and heavy in your stomach.  Sans’s jaw completely drops and Grillbz is eyeing you, lowing his glasses.  “So, how much?” you ask, pushing the bottle back to him.  Grillbz shakes himself off and motions for fifteen gold with his hands.  You shove it towards him, and he collects the coins.  You stir the cocoa with a spoon and gulp some down after blowing on it a little.  It’s burning, and the whiskey doesn’t help, but it’s just what you need.  You can feel the tenseness leaving your shoulders, listening to the steady conversation between your new fiery friend, and your possible  _ bone _ friend, commenting every now and then.  By the end of your cocoa you were a smiling and relaxed individual.

 

Sans snorts and looks at your openly laughing face.  His face is bright.  “y’know, maybe that stuff is good for you.  i think this is the most i’ve ever seen you laugh”.

 

You snort, handing the empty mug to Grillbz.  “I won’t be saying that in the morning.  Especially since there’s no painkillers here.  I’m going to have a killer headache in the morning,” you reply, words slurring slightly.  Your vision is a little foggy, and you’re comfortable for the first in what feels like a long time.  

 

“then why do you drink it?”

 

“Instant relief.  Future me can deal with it then, because I feel great,” you say, getting up off the stool, and tipping a little.

 

Sans grabs your arm, and slings it around his shoulders.  “hey, grillbz, but the ketchup on my tab, i’m going to take (F/n) to the inn”.

 

Grillbz nods, and Sans waves goodbye to a few people in the bar, and you both set out into the cold outside.  It’s snowing now, and the fluffy flakes are falling into your hair.  You whisper quiet puns into each other’s ears, before he takes you to the Inn, where you ask Sans to give Kara the 80 coins from your pocket.  He leads you up to your room, and sits you on your bed, coat, boots and all.  “c’mon.  you can’t sleep in those,” he says, pulling your boots off as you struggle with your coat.

 

“I  _ coat _ take it off,” you groan, the coat catching.

 

He nods.  “the hardest challenge to  _ boot _ ”.

 

You both giggle like morons before he tugs the other boot off and your coat comes free.  “alright, looks like we’re  _ skele-done _ with our  _ skele-puns _ for the night,” he says, pushing you into bed, you pulling the covers up.  You feel strangely vulnerable, and you don’t like it.

 

“So was Papyrus serious when he said that you wanted to date me?” you slur, alcohol fogging your brain.  You’d probably regret it in the morning, this was too good to be true if he agreed.

 

He looks at you, blue tinting his cheeks.  Or was that the light.  “i don’t wanna force ya into anything you don’t want kid, but sure.  it’d be nice to have somebody, at least”.

 

You feel warm.  You hope it’s the alcohol making you blush.  “I’d like that too, I think”.

 

“that’s good”.

 

“Yeah”.

 

You both pause.  No one says anything.  It’s too fucking awkward, you gotta say something deep or dramatic like they do in movies or some shit.

 

“Well, see you tomorrow”.   _ Fucking nailed it. _  You feel sleep coming easier and easier.  You can feel your black our catching up with you.

  
“yup,” Sans says, just as you begin to fall asleep.  “just remember: if you break my bro’s heart…” he says, his words blurring in your sleepy and drunk mind.  He turns the lights off, and you swear you see something bright blue deep in his skull.  “... **_Then you’re gonna have a really bad time_ ** ”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reason the reader plays ukulele is because:  
> 1.) It's piss easy to learn, so for people that are easily frustrated, it can be picked up again quickly and  
> 2.) It's easy to hide because of it's small size.
> 
> Also, I made the bathroom on the invisible wall next to Pap's room because even though Sans mentions the bathroom, you never see it in the house, so I put it where it wouldn't be visible in the game.
> 
> I imagine Pap and Sans don't turn on the heat in their house unless Undyne comes over, because they can't feel the cold. It goes right through them.


	5. Not A Nanny; You're Bone Idle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You meet Frisk, and have a spar with the tall skeleton bonefriend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Timelines are infinite. Maybe there's one where I could have written this better.

Soon, a few days had turned into a week, with still no word from Toriel on whether or not the smaller human had left.  After wanting to save enough money to take care of the kid, you moved in with the skeleton brothers, finally taking up Papyrus’s offer.  You earned money by walking the dogs, them claiming that it was more fun when someone was with them.  You gave some of yours to Sans, who turned the heating on for you, to at least help with that.  You despised being useless, and convinced him to let you help.

 

Papyrus had refused to give up on training you, and sometimes, his sessions went on for almost the entire day, breaking only for you to eat and stay hydrated.  It was difficult, but after a while, you got used to the constant exertion needed for the training, and soon, Papyrus was even sweating, from pushing the both of you.  The constant exercise had really made you pack on a lot of muscle, and you were in better shape than you’d been in your entire life.  Catching sight of yourself each day, you’d noticed the growing muscle on your stomach, legs, and arms.  Papyrus could probably open his own exercise program if he wanted to.

  


 The dates you had with the two skeletons were nothing less than an event.  Practically the highlights of your week.  Papyrus insisted that you have a formal as well as a casual.  Papyrus dressed up as a stereotypical french waiter in a suit with a fake mustache and bad accent with candles, while Sans was still dressed the same as usual, but with socks on under his slippers.  Sans feigned his own death and let his face fall into the large mound of glittery pasta.  Naturally, Papyrus didn’t believe it for a moment, so you both spent most of the night having a spaghetti fight in the kitchen.

 

The next date was Papyrus showing you a series of movies, all involving the same square robotic actor playing every part, except for the tree, which would always be done by an orange cat monster smoking a cigarette.  You dubbed him your favorite actor after he flipped the overdramatic rectangle off in the background.  Mettaton also shamelessly advertised his products in some of the scenes.  Papyrus had taken to petting your head, and you didn’t have the heart to tell him to stop, no matter how much you jumped slightly, or shook with attacking intent before you stopped yourself, reminding yourself that it was only Papyrus.  You distracted your thoughts by easily predicting what would happen in the movies, astounding Papyrus into believing that humans had some sort of fortune-telling magic.

 

Then, something strange happened.  You’d felt a crushing weight on your chest, and suddenly, you were back at yesterday’s movie date with Papyrus and Sans.  You blinked, a cold sweat forming on your neck.   _What the fuck just happened?_  

 

Papyrus, off to your right noticed your tenseness.  “(F/N)?  ARE YOU ALRIGHT?”

 

You coughed.  “Yeah, I uh, just remembered something,” you replied, glad you’d had practice keeping your voice steady.  It had to have been the other human.  You were the only other one with the ability to reset where you’d been.  Something must have gone wrong in the ruins.

 

“OH, REALLY?  WHAT?”

 

“I’m going to have to go pick something up, tomorrow”.

  
  


\------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


The next day, you got a call from Toriel, and picked it up on the first ring.  “Is it time for me to pick them up?” was all you said.

 

“Yes,” Toriel confirmed.  You hung up without a word.

 

You trudged through the snow, a headache pounding in your head.  You’d been so stressed, you’d gone with Sans for another night at Grillby’s, and Sans hadn’t been immune to the drunken atmosphere either.  Apparently, hot sauce was some sort of alcohol for them, the spices and heat messing with their magic.  You’d gotten in a heavy drinking battle, you and Sans race-chugging.  You both got really fucked up, long story short.  Neither of you were even sure who’d won.

 

Sans had seen you off after walking you to his sentry station.  He waved lazily before throwing back a bottle of relish.  Gross.  You trudged along, before opening the door to the Ruins.  You closed it behind you and trudged along the long hall.  You breathed deeply, relaxing at the musty smell of your first home.  

 

When you reached the top of the stairs, you called, “Honey, I’m hooooome!”

 

You heard a clatter in the kitchen, and you kicked off your boots, and hung your coat on the stair railing.  Toriel, looked out of the kitchen, before running over in excitement, lifting you into a crushing hug.  “Oof, good to see you too, Tori,” you gasped, hugging her back.

 

She sets you down, looking you over with a smile.  “You look good, my friend.  Come, there is someone, I wish for you to meet,” she says, leading you to the dining-living room complex.  There’s no one in sight.  “Oh, now where did they go?  My child?  Come here!  There’s someone I want you to meet!” she calls.  You grimace, your headache pounding.  A tiny face peeks shyly from behind Toriel’s reading chair, eyes hidden by messy short hair.  Tori sighs fondly with her hands on her hips.  “Now, what are you doing hiding over there, my child?  Come and say hello”.

 

Jeez, the kid really was small.  They were just barely at hip height with you.  They had a huge baggy striped sweater, grass stained jeans, and a band aid on their cheek.  They waved at you, and clung to Toriel’s leg.  “Sup, shorty.  What’s your name?”

 

They made a series of tiny gestures with one hand, that you recognized as ASL.  You were glad you had all those lessons back when you’d hung out with your old teacher.  “Sorry, kid, you’re gonna have to go a little slower.  I’m not perfect with it comes to sign.  Pretty sure I saw an ‘r’ in there, though”.

 

The kid signs a little more confidently this time.  F-R-I-S-K.  “Frisk?” you ask.  They nod.  “That’s a cool name.  Way better than mine.  I’m (F/n).  I’m going to be watching out for you while you’re in the Underground, alright?”  You’d always hated the term ‘babysitting’.  It sounded so infantile.

 

Frisk let go of Toriel, who was smiling in amusement, and made a series of confiedent signs.  I can take care of myself.

 

You chuckle.  “Of course you can, kid.  It’s just so Toriel feels a little better.  Think of me as more of a guide, huh?”  They nodded, appeased.

 

“Would you like some pie before you go?” Toriel asked.  You grinned, and spent the next few moments eating some butterscotch cinnamon pie.  You took a couple pieces with you for Sans and Papyrus.  When you were ready, you helped the kid pick out a bright red scarf out of the closet, and they grabbed a pair of galoshes from the shoe chest that Toriel had.  Waving goodbye, you left the Ruins, with a hug and a Bye, Mom! from Frisk.

 

You look down at them.  They look… they have an expression on their face…  “That look on your face…”

 

They look at you, eyes wide.  “That’s the look of someone who murdered their mother”.

 

They shake.

 

“That’s what that reset was, wasn’t it?  You regretted killing her, and tried to find another way”.  They look down.  A tear hits the ground.  Tiny sniffles can be heard.  Ah, shit.  “Ah, c’mon kid.  I didn’t mean it like that, crap, uh…  Look, just… don’t let it happen again, okay?”

 

They keep their head down.  I didn’t mean it… I’m sorry…

 

You sigh, and pat their back awkwardly.  “I know kid… I know…”  You feel really out of your element doing this… You’ve never had to take care of a kid before.  Doing the easiest thing, and change the subject.  They wipe their tears and look relieved, hugging your thigh.  You pat them on the head.  “Alright, kid.  Did Toriel already tell you the plan?  You’re going to be my niece, okay?”  The kid nodded.  Glad you got that sorted.

 

Does that mean I can call you Aunt?

 

“Yeah, sure.  If you want”.

 

They clapped, and made a combination of excited gestures that was a weird combination of the sign ‘aunt’ and ‘bear’.  “Aunt Bear?  Do I look like a bear to you?” you replied in amusement.  They wiggled their eyebrows, and you snorted.  “God, kid, don’t look at me like that.  I’m already taken”.  You step over a huge branch in the road.  A little after you and Frisk pass it, it snaps in half.  Is Sans seriously going to pull this again?  Well, you at least could give him another shot.  Frisk looks frightened and signs, Did you see that?!

 

“See what?  Don’t mess with me kid, I’m hungover; do you know what that means?” you say groaning.

 

That you’re drunk?  They sign, looking around, clinging to your coat hem.

 

“Close: it means I was drunk _yesterday_ ”.

 

They hum, and keep close.  They grip even harder when they hear Sans’s footsteps.  When you reach the gate, you pause, hearing Sans’s voice.  He repeats the dialogue to Frisk, them turning around shakily, taking their hand hesitantly.  A loud farting noise resounds.  You burst into laughter.  “Dammit, Sans, you really scared them!”

 

His grin widens, and winks at you.  “sorry babe, just couldn’t hold it in”.

 

You snort, pushing his shoulder, and he falls dramatically onto the snow.  “You’re terrible”.

 

“yup”.

 

You look at the kid.  They have the weirdest look on their face.  It really just screams _What the fuck just happened?_  “Sorry, kid.  This is my _bone_ friend, Sans.  Sans, this is my pretend-niece”

 

He grins at them from the ground.  “pleasure.  i’m supposed to be sentry, for catching humans, but… y’know.  i don’t really care about capturing anybody”.

 

“Are you going to get up?”

 

“nah”.

 

You look over the hill, catching sight of a familiar vermillion scarf.  “Uh oh.  Pap’s coming, Sans,” you say offhandedly.

 

They give a lax thumbs up from their position on the snowy ground.  Papyrus tromped through the snow.  You noticed out of the corner of your eye, Frisk signing the number 2 with amazement.

 

“SANS WHAT ARE YOU- (F/N)!!”

 

“Hey, babe”.

 

“DID YOU CLONE YOURSELF??  AND THEN… SHRINK??”

 

He was so precious, oh my God.  “No, Papyrus.  This is my pretend-niece”.

 

“OH”.  Well.  He looked almost disappointed.  “WELL, THEY HAVE TO DO THE PUZZLES, TOO!  IT’S TRADITION, NOW!” he clears his throat.  “TINY HUMAN!  PREPARE TO BE BAMBOOZLED BY THE GREAT PAPYRUS!!  THERE WILL BE PUZZLES!!  THERE WILL BE TRAINING!!  AND THERE WILL BE… FRIENDSHIP!!!” he cried, pointing to Frisk, who just looked even more confused.  Papyrus ran off, ‘nyeh’ing loudly.

 

You looked down at Frisk, who was frozen.  “Kid?”

 

Two?  They signed again, staring at you, wide eyed.

 

You wink at them.  “What can I say?  I’m a real catch”.

 

You tell Sans that you’ll see him later, and take Frisk’s hand at their request.  You lead them past Doggo, telling him you’d see him later at the bar.  Everything was going rather smoothly so far.  Frisk got past the electric maze, following Papyrus’s old prints, having not been covered by any recent snow.

 

“IMPOSSIBLE!!” shrieked Papyrus.  “IS IT TOO EASY?!?!  DO HUMANS HAVE A SECOND SENSE FOR PUZZLE SOLVING?!”

 

Frisk just winked, and you refused to answer, just giving the boys a kiss on the cheek hesitantly, leaving them both with bright orange and blue blushes on their cheeks.  Frisk wiggled their eyebrows.  You chuckled in embarrassment.  “Can it, kid”.

 

The only issue was when Frisk decided to play the ball game for half an hour.  It wasn’t that you had anything against it, it was just… boring to watch.  At least you could whittle.  You’d been working on a dog that was looking pretty good.  The only funny part was when Frisk ate it on the ice, trying to slide for the ball.  You ended up carrying them on your back after the hurt knee, wrapping it in bandage.  Papyrus seemed rather concerned though, and flitted about them while they did a Junior Jumble that Sans set up.

 

They wandered about, doing the Papyrus shaped switch puzzle when Sans crept up next to you.  “so you got a kid now.  what are you going to do?”  You cut an eye hole for the dog.

 

That was true.  It was a lot of trouble taking care of a kid.  You weren’t sure you were ready for that.  “Maybe I can buy a house or rent somewhere nearby.  I don’t know what the kid wants to do, but at least I’ll have somewhere to stay…”

 

Sans stared at you intently.  “you aren’t planning on leaving?”

 

You stared back, frowning.  “Why would I want to?”  Carve an ear.

 

He looks at you, blankly grinning.  He closes his eyes and sighs.  “i just thought that you’d want to go home”.

 

You can’t fucking believe it.  You laugh.  You’re laughing so hard.  It’s just SO funny, that you can’t stop.  “what?  i didn’t make a pun, so i know that’s not it”.

 

You pause, still giggling.  “Sans, do you even- ha ha- know what people on the surface say about this mountain… Mt. Ebbot?”  He nods.  “People that go up, are never seen again.  Why would someone climb a mountain like that, and then expect to go home?”

 

There’s a spark in his eye socket.  “you didn’t expect to be able to go home”.

 

You nod.  “Exactly.  I don’t want to go back.  Now, I don’t know what the kid has planned for themself, and really, it’s not any of my business what they want to do.  If they want to try to find a way home, they can.  They can’t expect me to follow back though”.  Make the toes.

 

“does that have anything to do with your LV?”

 

You grimace.  “Somewhat.  There’s a lot of reasons”.

 

He stares at you for a long time, before another sigh gives way.  “guess there’s no bones about it now: you’re staying with us as long as you want”.

 

“Are you sure?”

 

“never been more certain about anything.  hey, look.  the kid’s finished”.

 

Indeed, Frisk was tapping your legs, asking if you were watching.  “Sure was.  Good job, shorty,” you reply, tousling their hair.  You flick the knife closed and put the unfinished dog and knife in your pocket.  They giggle quietly, taking your hand, and letting you lead.  You lead them to the tile puzzle.  Hopefully, you would get lucky again.  Papyrus ran his explanation to Frisk again, Frisk looking much more confident than you had the first time.  Once again, you watched the tiles flash.  You waited with baited breath, with Frisk, who watched, determination shining in their eyes.  Then, you shook your head, as the tiles settled…

 

...Once again on a clear, pink path.  “OH, COME ON!” Papyrus shrieked.  

 

You follow Frisk, the kid skipping.  You direct Frisk to the long bridge.  From far across, Papyrus yells, “THERE USED TO BE A PUZZLE GAUNTLET HERE, TINY HUMAN!  I WASN’T EXPECTING ANOTHER SO SOON, SO I HADN’T REPLACED IT YET!  HOWEVER, WORRY NOT!  I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE WORKED OUT A NEW REPLACEMENT!!  INSTEAD, WE WILL SPARR!” he cried, posing, summoning several large blue and white bones.  He glanced to you.  “YOU ARE TO JOIN AS WELL, (F/N)!  IT WILL BE GOOD PRACTICE FOR TODAY!  EN-GARDE!!!  COME TO THIS SIDE WHEN YOU ARE READY!”

 

You chuckled.  Frisk tugs on your coat.  They look a little worried.  Is he going to hurt us?

 

You chuckle.  “Nah.  Papyrus couldn’t be dangerous if he tried.  The only dangerous thing about him is his cooking.  Just listen to me.  Blue attacks won’t hurt you if you stay still.  Just remember to stop and you’ll be fine.  I’ll watch out for you, kid.  Don’t worry”.

 

They seemed convinced, after all, Papyrus was very nice to them, offering spaghetti at every possible time, and worrying over their hurt knee.  “Here, kid.  Eat this.  I can’t have you sparring while you’re hurt”.  You hand them a cinnamon bunny.  They giggle at the shape, and munch it down, stretching their leg.  “Better?” you ask, them smiling.  They nod.  Thank you!  You chuckle, nodding at them.  “Well, let’s do it.  Ya ready, kid?”

 

They get a firm look in their eye, and nod.  “Let’s get going then”.

 

You march ahead of the kid, and lead them forward.  “NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH!  PREPARE YOURSELVES!!  FOR THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP!!”

 

You feel the familiar tug in your chest, and your soul comes out.  You glance at the kid to see how they’re doing.  Their soul is smaller, but burns much brighter.  A loud crimson heart with a slightly glossy coat, a little different from your phantasmic orange.  

 

**Papyrus is letting you attack first.**

 

You feign an attack to the left, making him jump to the right, right into your waiting hand.  You tap his side.  “One for me,” you say with a grin.

 

“NYEH HEH HEH!  DON’T GET COCKY, HUMAN!” he replies, as Frisk elects to spare him.

 

“YOU WON’T FIGHT ME?  VERY WELL, LET’S SEE HOW YOU HANDLE MY FABLED BLUE ATTACK!!!” he says, before summoning too many blue bones to count, sending them hurtling towards the two of you.  “FRISK!  STOP!”  Luckily, they remembered from before, and paused while the blue bones whirled by, an enormous flurry of blue before your vision cleared.  Before you could sigh in relief, a heavy weight settled on your chest.  Yours and Frisk’s souls changed from the warm colors they’d been, to a deep, dark indigo.  Far too quickly, a small bone hurtled toward the kid, who was still dazed from their soul’s sudden change.  “I got you, kid!” you jump, pulling your knife in a flash, slicing the bone clean in half.

 

Papyrus stomps his foot.  “THAT’S CHEATING!”

 

“So was that!  What kind of an attack was that?!”

 

He smirks victoriously.  “YOU’RE BLUE NOW.   _THAT’S_ MY ATTACK!!” he says, before dissolving into cackles.

 

**You’re blue now.**

 

You steady yourself in your newly shifted weight.  You feel light, but also… heavy?  You jumped, and your soul yanked you higher than you’d meant, but dragged you back down again.  You supposed you could try and lead with your soul.  You made another tap at Papyrus, but he saw you coming.  He dodged quickly.  

 

**MISS.**

 

“NYEH HEH HEH!  YOU’LL HAVE TO TRY HARDER, IF YOU WANT TO DEFEAT THE GREAT PAPYRUS!!” Papyrus grins, swinging bones.  You duck and jump, pulling yourself around and about the hard to maneuver bones.  

 

Frisk motions with their hands.  I don’t want to fight!  Please, can we be friends?

 

Papyrus gives a conflicted look.  “NOW, HUMAN, I KNOW THAT IT MUST BE HARD TRYING TO FIGHT THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AND I AM A VERY COOL FRIEND THAT YOU MAY WANT, BUT YOU ARE A HUMAN!  AND I CAN’T TAKE MY DATE TO UNDYNE!  SHE WOULD GO CRAZY!  ABSOLUTLY OFF THE WATERFALL!!”

 

He swings a bone at Frisk a little too quick for your liking, so you propel them upward, using your soul, and take the hit.  Your HP falls by a single point.  

 

Frisk SPARES again, and gestures again.  I didn’t eat your trap earlier… will you make me some spaghetti when we’re done?

Papyrus looks ecstatic.  “FRET NOT, TINY HUMAN!  I, MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS, WILL MAKE YOU ALL THE PASTA YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE!!  RIGHT AFTER MY SPECIAL ATTACK!!”  He cries, and you ready yourself, to grab the kid.  When Papyrus summons his attack from the snow, a tiny white dog pops out of the ground.  It’s belly is bulging.  It looks very satisfied.  “WHAT?  HEY!  DID YOU EAT MY SPECIAL ATTACK?!?!?!?  YOU MEDDLING CANINE!  HOW DARE YOU!!!”  He pulls the dog in close, and reaches forcibly into its mouth.  “GIVE…. ME… BACK…. MY…. SPECIAL ATTACK!!!” Papyrus grinds out, before an extremely large… skull?  It looks like skull, but not of any animal you’ve ever seen.  Vaguely reptilian and slightly feline, it looks far to big to fit in the little white dog, who’s fallen asleep in the snow.  It must have unhinged its jaw to fit its mouth around it.  “UGGHHH!!  ITS ALL… STICKY.  HOW DISGUSTING!  I CAN’T USE IT LIKE THIS!!” he cries flicking the slobber from his phalanges and sighs.  He’s broken a sweat already, and the kid looks tired too.  “WELL, I SUPPOSE I’LL JUST USE A REALLY COOL REGULAR ATTACK, THEN”.

 

**Papyrus is preparing a really cool regular attack.**

 

You snort in amusement.  Papyrus is sweating, and looks like he’s getting really tired.  You elect to attack once more, and manage to clip his ribs, before moving back to help the kid.  You hold hands to use each other for propulsion, spinning around the large bones, jumping and ducking.  The magically lengthening and shortening bones are the hardest to dodge, and once the kid gets hit.  To your surprise they get back up, and keep moving.  You are more careful with them, now.  Papyrus sends some words at you, proudly the words ‘Cool Dude’ are sent at the two of you in bone art, along with a very tiny bone art skateboarder.  It’s quite cute.  

 

Suddenly, everything goes darker, and you realize that the cause of it…

 

… Is a bone forest, beneath an enormous bone, the size of a sentry station.  You get the feeling that Papyrus is pulling some bullshittery now.  You bend and give a foot hold with your hands.  “Kid!  Use this!”

 

But what about you? They sign, worry lining their young face.

 

“I’ll be fine, jump!”  You don’t need to say anymore, as they take the leap, you heaving them up; their soul giving them the energy needed for a perfect jump.  Using your own, you jump with all your might, taking a running start, and using your soul to mostly clear it.  You fall just short, and use your foot to push off the enormous bone.  You skid to a stop, sloppily, next to Frisk, who fell into the snow next to you.  You pant.  “Nice jump, shorty,” you grin, and offer a fist.  They take a look, stare you in the eyes, and grin large and wide and start to laugh.  It’s happy and loud, and almost sounds more like coughing at first with snorting.  It’s pretty adorable if you’re being honest.

 

Papyrus meanwhile, his gasping for breath, with his jaw hanging.  “WELL, *HUFF* Y-YOU CAN’T DEFEAT, *HUFF* ME!  Y-YEAH!  I CAN SEE YOU SHAKING IN YOUR BOOTS, TINY HUMAN!!  WELL, FEAR NOT, HUMAN!  I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, ELECT TO GRANT YOU PITY!  I WILL **SPARE** YOU BOTH!!”

 

**Papyrus is sparing you.**

 

You both tap the MERCY button, and your souls fade back into your chests.  You grin.  “Alright!  Nice moves, shorty!  Up top!” you grin, and you give them a victorious high five.  They make a little dance, before you both listen to a gentle crying noise.  You both walk to Papyrus, who valiantly tries to cover up his tiny whimpers.  “Pap?  Papyrus, what’s wrong?  Are you okay?”

 

“NYOO HOO HOO,” he says, looking at you both with watery eye sockets.  “I CAN’T EVEN STOP SOMEONE AS WEAK AS THE TINY HUMAN!  IT’S UNDERSTANDABLE THAT I CAN’T BEAT YOU, (F/N), FOR YOU ARE QUITE STRONG, BUT… HOW WILL I EVER BE ABLE TO JOIN THE ROYAL GUARD IF I CAN’T EVEN DEFEAT SOMEONE AS WEAK AS THEM??  MY FRIEND QUANTITY WILL FOREVER REMAIN AT ONE...” he says unhappily.

 

Frisk, while looking annoyed at the comments on their strength, pat Papyrus’s back.  They sign slowly, Papyrus staring into their hands.  “WHAT?  REALLY?!  YOU WANT TO BE MY FRIEND?!  WOWIE!!  THIS IS AMAZING!  I GUESS ALL YOU NEED TO DO TO MAKE FRIENDS IS GIVE THEM AWFUL PUZZLES AND THEN FIGHT THEM!  I GUESS I WAS RIGHT THE FIRST TIME!  I HEREBY GIVE YOU PERMISSION TO PASS THROUGH SNOWDIN!  I’LL EVEN GIVE YOU DIRECTIONS TO THE SURFACE.

 

“CONTINUE ON THROUGH UNTIL YOU REACH THE END OF THE CAVERN.  THEN, WHEN YOU REACH THE CAPITAL, CROSS THE BARRIER.  THAT’S THE MAGICAL SEAL TRAPPING US UNDERGROUND.  ANYTHING CAN ENTER, BUT NOTHING CAN EXIT… EXCEPT FOR SOMEONE WITH A POWERFUL SOUL.  LIKE YOU!  THAT’S WHY THE KING WANTS A HUMAN.  HE WANTS TO BREAK THE BARRIER WITH SOUL POWER!!”  Soul power?  This was the first that you were hearing of it.  Time to do some research in the library when you get back.  “THEN, US MONSTERS CAN RETURN TO THE SURFACE!  OH, I ALMOST FORGOT TO TELL YOU,” Papyrus says, voice growing solemn.  

 

“TO REACH THE EXIT, YOU WILL HAVE TO PASS THROUGH… THE KING’S CASTLE.  THE KING OF ALL MONSTERS.  HE IS… WELL…”  Papyrus hesitates, before returning his previous tone of joy.  “HE’S A BIG, FUZZY PUSHOVER!!!  EVERYBODY LOVES THAT GUY!  I’M CERTAIN IF YOU SAY, ‘EXCUSE ME, MR. DREEMURR, MAY I PLEASE GO HOME?’ THAT HE’LL LEAD YOU RIGHT TO THE BARRIER HIMSELF!”  Papyrus laughs loudly, and grins.  “WELL, THAT’S ENOUGH TALKING!  I’LL BE AT HOME BEING A REALLY COOL BOYFRIEND AND A REALLY COOL REGULAR FRIEND!  FEEL FREE TO DROP BY!” he chuckles, petting you on the head, not minding when you flinch, and presses his teeth to your cheek, making a loud, ‘MWAH’ in case you didn’t know it was a kiss.  He practically skips off toward the town.

 

You take Frisks hand, and show them the sign, still proclaiming a welcome.

  
“So kid,” you ask.  “Where to?”


	6. Drumming Up A Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You make a plan, jam, and meet the Head of the Royal Guard. Kind of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about skipping for a few weeks, I was in the middle of writing a chapter when my dad got tickets for my senior trip! We ended up going to Florida, and went snorkeling with my bro. I would have posted it, but the internet was down at our Inn, so I couldn't!
> 
> Anyway, sorry for the wait!

The kid pointed at the store, tugging on your coat.  “Store?  Alright”.

 

You stepped in, the door dinging cheerfully.  Diana, who’d been reading a magazine, looked up and smiled.  “Howdy, again, (F/n)!  I see you have a youngster with you.  Are they yours?” she asked waving sweetly at Frisk, who brightly grinned and returned the gesture, before padding to the left side of the store.

 

You chuckle.  “Nah, they’re my sister’s kid.  Stay in sight, okay, shorty?”  They gave you a thumbs up and commenced their snooping.

 

“They’re a pretty cute kid.  Did you guys need anything?”

 

“Nah,” you said, looking at a painting with a broken frame.  “Just looking around.  First time they’ve been to Snowdin”.

 

“Oh!” she said, turning to their direction, where they were hiding in a coat rack.  “Welcome to Snowdin, kid!”  They popped their head out and gave a small thanks with their hands.  

 

“Can they talk?” she whispered to you.

 

“Nah.  They sign.  They hear about as much as any other kid, as far as I can tell”.

 

She snickered.  “Which is selective as it is”.

 

“No kidding-” you say with a laugh, before you hear a loud thud.  You sigh.  “Kid, if you broke anything, I’m going to make you pay for it, I swear to- is that what I think it is?”  Underneath a tipped pile of books, is a very disgruntled looking Frisk, but on the table next to them, stacked above higher than most, was a pretty looking guitar and amp set.  You hadn’t laid hands on a guitar since you fell, and damn, if it wasn’t a sight for sore eyes.  Frisk let out a huff, and your mind snapped to them.  “Oh, sorry kid; here”.  You cleared the books away and stacked them in the box, and helped them up.  Look at the tiny guitar!  They signed in excitement.  Looking next to it, which you had previously ignored, was a red ukulele.  All three items looked worse for wear; scuffed and with a few strings missing on both guitar and ukulele, they had clearly seen better days.  “That’s a ukulele, Frisk.  You know how to play?” you ask.  They shook their head.  You paused, contemplating.  “Do you want to learn?”

 

They brightened.  Can I?  Will you teach me?  You grinned.  “Sure, why not?  Oi, Diana, how much for the amp, guitar, and the uke?” you called to the desk.

 

“For all three?”

 

“Yeah, and a box of strings for each”.

 

She tapped her chin.  How about we make a deal of all three for 220 gold, and the strings for 5 gold?”  

 

You sorted out the money yourself, before Frisk tugged your coat, and pointed at the cinnamon bunnies.  “If you want one for yourself, you can buy.  I have some, but they’re for emergencies,” you say, and Frisk shoves enough gold for 2 at you and takes a pair.  They grin and bite the head off of one dramatically.  You snort.  You remember doing the same thing when you were a kid.  Hell, you still did, sometimes.  Gathering the equipment up in your arms, you gave the strings and uke to the kid, who beared them with pride.  They didn’t stop thanking you until you hit the steps of the boys’ house.

 

“Take off your shoes, kid, we’ll be here a while”.  They struggled to pull them off with their heel and toes, refusing to set their treasures down for a moment.  You flopped onto the couch, and the kid collided next to you.

 

You set the amp away on the floor, and took the ukulele and the nylon strings from Frisk, the metal strings safe in your pocket with a pick you’d grabbed at the last moment.  “Okay, kid, first things first: I’ll show you how to string it, then we can tune, and then play it”.  They frowned.  Can’t you just do that?  You snort.  “Well, what are you going to do once you learn how to play, and I’m not there?  What if it falls out of tune or pops a string?  You following?”  They nod glumly.  

 

You went through the motions, slowing for them to follow, and showed them how to trim, leaving the ends a little long, just in case.  Then, the tuning.  That took the longest, since you didn’t have a tuner, and had to play by ear.  You strummed a little to be sure of the notes, and ran a few chords to test.  The kid watched with wide eyes, and tapped your knee, just as Papyrus came down the stairs.  

 

“HUMANS!!  I WAS LURED HERE BY WONDERFUL MUSIC!  WHAT IS GOING ON?”  He asked, hopping from stair to stair.  

 

You looked up with a grin.  “Hey, Pap.  I’m going to teach the kid how to play.  Wanna listen in?”

 

He looked positivly gleeful.  “CAN I?!?!?!”

 

The short kid grinned and gave a thumbs up.  “Looks like a yes to me,” you say with a small smile.  

 

Papyrus sat, and encouraged the kid every time they messed up a chord, which was frequently, making their face grow more and more determined by the second.  The kid was persistent, you’d give them that, but when you began to see a blister on their finger appear, you insisted they stop.  You’d already gone through several major chords, and they were catching on fast with their strumming.

 

“(F/N),” Papyrus asked, “SINCE YOU ARE TEACHING THE TINY HUMAN, YOU MUST KNOW HOW TO PLAY, RIGHT?”

 

You plucked each string in order.  “Yep”.

 

He looks moderately shy when he asks this, rattling his bones slightly.  “WOULD YOU PLAY FOR US?  YOU DON’T HAVE TO IF YOU DON’T WANT TO, OF COURSE”.

 

You furrow your brow, running over riffs and chords in your mind, giving it a few strums.  “I don’t know, Papyrus, I’m pretty out of practice.  Not to mention I’ve never really played for anyone.  I’m not exactly a performer”.

 

Papyrus tsked, and Frisk tugged your shirt.  Please?!  Even if you aren’t amazing, I haven’t heard music since I was on the surface!

 

“YES, (F/N)!  PLEASE PLAY!”

 

 _Ugh.  They’re like… tiny puppies.  How dare they make eyes at me like that._  You think.  You strum a few times, trying to drum up a few ideas.  It had to be kid friendly, and with little to no swearing, so really that narrowed down your options quite a lot.  Most of the stuff you listened to on the surface was usually whatever your teacher was listening to, or a whole lot of punk.  You didn’t feel quite like singing, so it would have to be instrumental.  You finally settled on a classic, one of the first songs you learned.  Smoke On The Water by Deep Purple.  Fairly simple, and an even beat, while also good for dramatics.  It also sounded fucking hilarious on a ukulele.  

 

Frisk seemed to dig it, and Papyrus listened carefully with closed eyes.  Slowly, you changed to just jamming, and making it up as you went along, alternating beats and playing with notes.  As notes grew bouncier, Frisk tugged Papyrus up to dance, who then began with a hilarious dance contest.  As you grew tired, they decided on a draw.

 

When you’d finished, Frisk was clapping and excitedly signing to you, patting your knee.  “Pretty good, huh?  I’d better be, I didn’t spend several years of practice to be mediocre,” you grin.

 

“HUMAN!  THAT WAS EXCEPTIONAL!!!!!  WAS THAT MUSIC FROM THE SURFACE?”  Papyrus asked from his seat next to you.

 

You hummed, setting the uke down and hauling the amp onto your lap.  “Yeah.  The first bit was one of the first songs I ever learned, because the melody was so simple”.

 

Frisk tugged your pant’s leg.  Can we go outside?  “You can, if you want.  Just stay in town, okay?  Stay safe, kid”.  They nodded, and skipped out of the house, happy to go play.  You flicked your knife out, making do without a screwdriver.  You wedged open the front, and looked into the amp.  Papyrus leaned over to you.  “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?”

 

You examined the entrails of the equipment.  “Seeing if anything’s wrong with this amp”.

 

“WHAT IS IT FOR?”

 

“The guitar.  It makes it sound different.  You’ll see”.  You saw a few wires loose.  “Yo, Pap, do we have any duct tape or something?”

 

Papyrus got up and grinned.  “WHY, YES!!  I HAVE SOME IN MY TRAP MAKING DRAWER!  DO YOU REQUIRE IT?”

 

You nodded.  “That would help, please”.

 

He was back before you could say anything else.  Long legs really were a perk.  You tore a few thin strips, and taped the wires back to their proper places.  “Looks like I’ve done all i can do.  Let’s see how she sings…”

 

You fixed the strings on the guitar, and hooked it up to the amp to tune.  It screeched horribly.  Papyrus cringed.  “SHE DOES NOT SING VERY WELL… IS SHE OKAY?!?!”

 

You snort, and strum.  A sharp sound echos.  “She lives!”  You say with a cackle, and begin tuning, and playing with the equalizer and overdrive, to get your tone.  It’s a short process.  You set the guitar down, and slide her under the couch, and unhook the amp.  Papyrus looks a little unhappy, but you should go get Frisk.  It’s much darker out, and you still haven’t looked for sleeping arrangements.  

 

Stepping into the cold is a wake up call from your music, and you snap from your relaxed daze.  Spotting them and MK making a snow monster, you make your way over.

 

MK is the first to notice you, with him posing.  “Yo!  Boss, you’re back!!”

 

You chuckle.   _Boss, huh?_  You kinda liked that.  “Yeah.  I just came to get Frisk.  Papyrus is making spaghetti,” you say, and Frisk scrunches their nose.  You laugh.  “Yeah, we’re heading to Grillby’s later.  We can get some grub there.  Frisk decides it’s a good plan, and the two of you say goodbye to MK.  “So, we don’t know where you’re going to sleep.  I’ve still got reign over the couch, so do you want to stay at the Inn?”

 

Frisk nods.  Easy kid.  “Cool.  Do you have enough for a room?  It’s only until we figure something better out”.  They nod again.  You smile, and head to Papyrus and Sans’s.  Maybe having a kid around wouldn’t be so bad.

 

Will you show me around Waterfall tomorrow? they asked with a yawn.

 

You pressed your lips together.  You couldn’t understand why they’re trying so hard to leave.  “...Yeah, alright”.

 

You heaved a sigh.  You need a drink.

  


\------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


_Later the next morning…_

 

You’re awoken to the sound of stage whispers.  You keep your eyes closed, and listen, like you used to.  

 

“...I JUST FEEL BAD.  AND I CAN’T KEEP UNDYNE IN THE DARK FOREVER!!  NOT THAT SHE ISN’T LITERALLY, I MEAN THAT IN A METAPHORICAL MEANING…  I ALREADY TOLD HER THAT A HUMAN FELL, BUT NOW THERE’S TWO!!   _TWO_ SANS!!!!!  I CAN’T HIDE THAT!  ESPECIALLY IF ONE OF THEM WANTS TO LEAVE THE UNDERGROUND!”  Papyrus is loudly whispering.  You hear Sans respond, but he’s too quiet to hear.  “... THANK YOU, SANS.  I APPRECIATE THE ENCOURAGEMENT.  I GUESS THERE’S NOTHING ELSE TO DO”.

 

There’s quiet.  You feel… bad.  Was Papyrus planning on taking you to the head of the Royal Guard?  It sounded like he was hesitant, at least.  Perhaps he didn’t want to give you and Frisk up?  Your lips press together.  Who were you kidding?  You were wasting their time.  You didn’t know about Sans, but Papyrus was definitely lying for yours and Frisk’s sake.  Taking care of a kid was understandable, but you?  Inexcusable.  You were an adult.  You were supposed to be able to care for yourself, and here, your boyfriend(s?) were lying for you.  You open your eyes to the ceiling.  You heave a sigh.

 

You don’t want to do this, but it was a long time coming.  You roll out of bed, and pull down the ridden up pants legs and shirt sleeves.  You stretch, cracking your back, humming in relief.  You roll your shoulders, walking into the kitchen.  Papyrus starts, and sweat forms on his skull.  “AH!  GOOD MORNING, (F/N)!  HOW DID YOU SLEEP?”

 

“Fine.  I’m heading out, okay?” you grumble.

 

“W-WHERE MIGHT YOU BE GOING?”

 

“Waterfall.  Promised to watch Frisk, and they’re pretty excited.  We won’t go far”.

 

“I- ALRIGHT.  PLEASE CALL IF YOU NEED ANYTHING… ALRIGHT?”

 

You pause.  “...Yeah, of course”.

 

He stares at you hard.  “CAN YOU PROMISE?”

 

“... Heh.  Yeah.  I promise”.

 

Papyrus calms a reasonable amount.  “ALRIGHT.  BE SAFE!!!”

 

You’re about to make your coffee when you catch sight of a mug on the counter, steaming.  You walk closer, revealing a mug of coffee already made.  Neither of the boys drank it, so who?

 

“Papyrus…?”

 

“HM?”

 

You held up the mug.  His eyes sparkled.  “AH, YES!  SANS SUGGESTED WE MAKE YOUR COFFEE FOR YOU!!  DON’T WORRY, (F/N), I WATCHED HIM VERRRRRRYYY CLOSELY TO MAKE SURE HE DIDN’T PUT KETCHUP OR SOMETHING IN IT!!”

 

“Oh.  Thanks, boys,” you reply dumbly.  You hesitantly sip.  It warms your heart.

 

“how is it?  hope it’s _cup to par_ with how you make it,” he asks with his usual lazy grin.  Papyrus screeches.

 

You hum.  “It’s as terrible as it would be if I made it”.

 

Papyrus falters, and Sans gets still a moment.  “OH, SHOOT, (F/N), I’M-”

 

“I love it”.

 

Sans relaxes.  “well, that’s good.  because i’m way too lazy to do it a second time in one day”.

 

“SANS!”

 

You slam the rest of the coffee back, startling them both.  You head upstairs, after pressing a kiss to each of the boy’s skulls aloofly, and grab your clothes on the way to change.  Sans had told you how much warmer Waterfall was compared to Snowdin, but you weren’t sure how reliable that was.

 

Tugging a jacket on, you head out into Snowdin’s freezing world.  You wouldn’t have to wear your coat in Waterfall, so it would be better to go without.  Taking the tunnels, you hurry to the Inn.  Nodding to Kara and her kid, she gives you Frisk’s room number.  You open the door without knocking.  They’re on the bed eating a cinnamon bun and wave.  “Ready to go?”

 

They nod.  They grab your hand, and tug you along, through the tunnels, and past the mist, and toward the sound of rushing water.  You’re met with curtains of water, streaming from the from the too-high-to-see ceiling of the Underground.  Frisk gapes openly, and despite your mild expression, you’re impressed too.  It’s incredible, if you’re honest.  The spray fills your lungs, and brings the scent of wet earth to your nose, reminding you of a seaside cave.  Small crystals litter the walls and pathways, glowing warmly in the cool air.  

 

Further along, you happen across a red monster, a blue flower, and Sans in a sentry post.  Sans waves lazily to you.  

 

You spot MK sitting on the cliffside next to a waterfall, Frisk rushing over.  “Hey, MK.  What are you doing out?”

 

He laughs with child-like glee.  “The same as you, Boss!  You’re out to see Undyne too, right?  Isn’t she the coolest?!”

 

Frisk raises their eyebrows but doesn’t reply, opting for silence.  You shrug, but he isn’t really paying much attention.  You offer a smile, and place a finger to your lips when he asks you not to tattle on him to his parents.

 

Tugging Frisk away, you pause at the blue flower.  “That’s an echo flower,” a fish monster comments.  “It repeats the last thing it heard, over and over…”  To yours and Frisk’s surprise, the crystalline blue flower repeats the monster’s words, albeit a tad higher in tone, and in more of a whisper.  

 

Padding to Sans’s sentry, he greets you is his usual lax manner.  “What are you doing here?” you ask, amused.

 

He raises a brow bone.  “what?  haven’t you ever seen a guy with two jobs before?” he asks.  “fortunately, twice as many jobs, means twice as many legally required breaks.  do mind if I borrow the kid for a bit, babe?  we’re just heading over to grillby’s.  I know a shortcut”.

 

You scrunch your nose at the pet name.  “Knock yourself out, punlord”.

 

Sans chuckles.  “punlord.  i like that.  anyways, you up for it, shorty?”  Frisk huffs in annoyance, but nods.  “well.  i guess i can pry myself away from work for you.  later, babe”.  

 

Frisk leaves, waving goodbye to you, following Sans deeper into Waterfall.  Shuffling your feet a tad, you wander off, figuring that Frisk could find you when they were done.  You wander to a waterfall, rocks tumbling with the water.  You’re glad that your boots are waterproof.  You slosh through the water, carefully avoiding the rocks.  You walk into the next room, taking a swig from your flask.  At least the kid wouldn’t have to see that.  You admire the crystals along the wall, walking into some very tall grass.  A chocolaty scent washes over you.  Curiously, you nip at a leaf.  It tastes almost just like chocolate ice cream.  The Underground kept getting better and better.

 

Above you, you hear footsteps clanking, like heavy armor.  Instinctively, you crouch into the grass, folding down, until you were sure you were covered.  You were glad that you wore dark colors, now.  

 

“H… HI, UNDYNE!  I’M HERE WITH MY DAILY REPORT…”

 

You’d know that nasal voice anywhere.  Rough from constant yelling, and rolling ‘r’s with extravagance.  There was no mistaking your boyfriend’s voice.

 

“UHHH… REGARDING THAT HUMAN I CALLED YOU ABOUT A FEW DAYS AGO…”

 

There’s a questioning voice, but it’s to cluttered to make out through the rushing of water, unlike Papyrus’s loud voice.

 

“HUH?  DID I FIGHT THEM?  Y-YES!  OF COURSE I DID!  I FOUGHT THEM VALIANTLY!”

 

“...”

 

“...WHAT?  DID I CAPTURE THEM...?  W-W-WELL…  NO.  I TRIED VERY HARD, UNDYNE,” he pleaded, tone getting almost too soft to hear.  “BUT IN THE END… I FAILED”.

 

“...”

 

“...W-WHAT?  YOU’RE GOING TO TAKE THE HUMAN’S SOUL YOURSELF…”  Papyrus’s tone grows apalled.  You hear some hesitant steps, like he was walking to them.  Oh, Papyrus.

 

“BUT, UNDYNE!  YOU DON’T H-HAVE TO DESTROY THEM!  YOU SEE…  YOU SEE…”  A few more steps, farther away now.

 

Low growls can be heard.  You clench your fist around your flask.

 

“I… I UNDERSTAND.  I’LL HELP YOU IN ANY WAY I CAN”.  Papyrus’s tone changes from his usual hopeful spark, to a glum submission.  Rapid footsteps tell you of his retreat.  You let out a deep breath you hadn’t known you’d been holding, and make an attempt to get up.  

 

You shuffle, rustling the grass.  You freeze at the sound of heavy footsteps, and quickly cover up again.  Looking up, you catch a glimpse of a tall figure, clothed in shining armor.  A spear crackles as it forms in her hand, energy heating.  She scans the grass, and you hold your breath.  Not finding anything, she snaps the spear, and it dissolves into the darkness.  Undyne, Head of the Royal Guard, stalks away from the cliff edge.  

 

You don’t come out until her footsteps have faded completely.

 

You tread out of the brush, heart heavy, and to your surprise, a small yellow monster tumbles out after you, onto his face.  “Yo… did you see the way she was staring at you…?  That… was AWESOME!!” he cries, hopping onto his feet.  Maybe to him, it was.  “I’m SOOOOO jealous!  What’d you do to get her attention…?  Ha ha!!” he cheers.  He races along.  “C’mon!  Let’s go watch her beat up some bad guys!”  He falls on his face, and gets up like it didn’t even happen, racing into the dark.

 

Feeling your throat tighten, you turn and run back to the beginning of the cave.

 

She was after Frisk.

  
And you’d let Satan fuck your cold corpse before you let someone hurt a sweet kid like Frisk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The pun didn't even fit the chapter, there isn't any drumming in here...
> 
> Anyway, if you didn't know Smoke On The Water, there's something amiss in your life. It's not the best song by Deep Purple, in my opinion, but it's fairly easy to get the hang of. Here's a link to the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-Z6Ar814t8
> 
> The truth is, I'm not really happy with how this chapter turned out. It seems really... forced?? Idk, tell me what I could have done better.
> 
> If you guys are cool with instruments being played, tell me, or I can forget all about them.


	7. There's No Roads, But You Still Manage To Cut People Off

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Undyne's opinion of you is rather... murdery.
> 
> A little bit of action.

The water soaks into your boots from your rampant splashing.  Colors feel too saturated.  The dark of the cave feels blinding; too bright and too dark.  It felt like you were back in your room, shouting in the hall outside.  You ran.  In your rushed steps, you trip with a grunt, your knee and hands crashing into the ground.  You pick yourself up with a grunt, pants soaked.  You held onto your only friend, a stuffed dog.  The shouts got louder.  Panting, you continue with your sprint, past the Sentry Station, and into Snowdin.  

 

You almost run face first into Frisk.  “FRISK!  Jesus, are you- I thought- oh man, fuck fuck fuck-”.  They were so small, so small-

 

Frisk shakes your shoulders.  “S-stop!”  It’s just short of a loud whisper, but it’s enough to make you stop.  Your hands are resting on their cheeks from patting them, instinctively looking for injuries.   I’m fine!  What’s going on?

 

You pause and take a deep breath, before pulling Frisk close.  “Ah, dammit.  I’m sorry kid I got- got a little spooked.  I- *huff* guess I got a little out of hand, huh?”  You brush their cheek, smearing blood on their cheek.

 

Wait.

 

Blood?   
  


“Oh, crud, kid are you bleeding?”

 

Frisk starts and raises a hand to their face, and you notice little blood smears all along their clothes.  Where…?

 

Frisk grabs your hand, and shows it to you.  Your palms are scratched, little pieces of sharp rock embedded in your callous, bloody palms.  Oh.  “Oh”.  You’d been so worried you hadn’t thought about what was happening.  “Sorry kid,” you roll a small stone out.  “I guess I shouldn’t take my health for  _ granite _ , huh?”

 

Frisk presses their lips together and tugs your wrist to Papyrus and Sans’s.  Your knee stings.  They push you in.   Take off your shoes, and get on the couch.

 

You laugh quietly.  “Gee, demanding, a little?”  You do it anyway.  Frisk reaches into their pocket and holds out a large bandage.   It’s all I’ve got.  Is your knee going to be okay?

 

You sigh, before bopping them in the forehead.  “I’ll be fine.  How about we give you a lesson in taking care of cuts and stuff.  Get in my bag, there should be a bunch of white cloth in there”.

 

Frisk does what you ask, getting the bandages out.  In the meantime, you pull the tiny stones out, and head to the bathroom to wash them out.  You take a pair of tweezers and pull the little stones out, and into the trash.  Washing your hands, you frown at the bloody, rough skin.  Thick callouses from years of playing guitar, and shallow scars from knife tricks being practiced.  Nails were bitten or broken to their root.  

 

You flexed them, before wandering out and down to the couch where the kid was waiting.  “Hey, kid, follow me.  I’ve got something to show you”.  You walked into the kitchen and opened the cupboard, while the kid jumped to sit on the counter.  Pulling down a bowl,  you ask, “Get me the sugar?  It’s in the other cabinet behind the strainer…”

 

Frisk gives you a weird look, but complies, while you fill the bowl with water from the bathroom upstairs.  There was no way you would be able to reach the sink in the kitchen.

 

Bringing the bowl of water carefully back down, you tell frisk to get another bowl.  They put it on the counter next to them, and begin making sugar paste.  “Sugar helps keep cuts clean, so remember that if you ever skin your knee, okay?”

 

Frisk frowns but nods with curiosity.  They lean forward, as you add more sugar.  You take a globul of it, and smear it on your palms, feeling it sting.  You snap your fingers pointing to the cloth.  “Bandage”.  It’s in your waiting hand quick.  You carefully wrap your hand, around the knuckles and under to the wrist, and tie the ends together.  As you finish your other hand, you check for anything else, noticing a rip in your soaked pants, and a heavy blood stain.

 

Frisk scrunches their nose.   That looks like it hurts .  “Yeah, a little bit.  Don’t worry about it.  Help me bring this stuff upstairs for a sec”.

 

Hauling a bowl of sugar paste upstairs to get a blow dryer wasn’t the most impressive thing you’ve ever done, but it’s one of the hardest to explain to an outside party.  Frisk had the bandages and kept glancing at your knee worriedly.  

 

Getting into the bathroom, you took a washcloth with soap, and showed Frisk how to clean it with hand soap.  You ask Frisk to grab your boots to dry those as well, while using Papyrus’s blow dryer (don’t ask) to dry your pants in record time.  You gave your knee a good sugary smear, and tied a bandage around the joint, before drying your boots too, and get up.

 

“Alright, you ready?”  Frisk nods, and takes your hand, so you can walk out together.   On the second go round through Waterfall, you spy Sans taking a nap at his station.  You decide to let the skeleton sleep.  You’ve noticed that he’d been sometimes just looking off into space when he thought no one was watching and just… stared blankly.  He looked so tired.  You give him a pat on the head as you pass, small smile in his sleep widening a moment.  

 

Further on, past the chocolaty grass, you discovered a trail of sprouts, that when connected, formed a large bridge of water lily flowers and enormous lily pads.  Passing a small bridge, a hilariously buff mer...horse...man flexes in.  He winks at you and blows a kiss, beginning a FIGHT.

 

***Aaron flexes in!**

 

You scrunch your nose, as Frisk flexes back, mimicking a wink.

 

***Aaron flexes twice as hard!**

 

***ATTACK increases for you two!**

 

“Flexing contest?  Ok, flex some more,” he winks.

 

***Aaron is ready for your next flex.**

 

Frowning, you cross your arms, unimpressed.  Frisk flexes their little arms some more, and Aaron flexes back, muscles rippling.

 

***You flex harder.**

 

***Aaron flexes thrice as hard.**

 

***ATTACK increases for you two.**

 

“Nice!  I won’t lose, tho,” he winks again, disgustingly.

 

***(F/n)’s DEFENSE increased.  What a cad.**

 

***Aaron is ready for your next flex.**

 

Frisk flexes, and to your surprise, Aaron flexes, and almost flys out of the room.

 

***Aaron flexes very hard…**

 

***Aaron flexes right out of the room!**

 

***YOU WON!  You gained 0 XP, and 30 gold!**

 

You furrow your brow.  “Well.  I hope that doesn’t ever happen again”.  Frisk nods, and runs to the bridge flora.  Fiddling with the flowers, Frisk eventually making a bridge, they insisted creating without help.  Padding across the bridge, your phone rings.  Repeated chants of “SPAGHETTI, SPAGHETTI, SPAGHETTI, SPAGHETTI…”

 

Flipping your phone open with apprehension, you click it onto speaker.  “HELLO, THIS IS PAPYRUS!!!  I’M GLAD YOU GAVE ME YOUR NUMBER, BECAUSE OTHERWISE, I WOULD HAVE HAD TO DIAL EVERY NUMBER SEQUENTIALLY UNTIL I GOT YOURS!  THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN RATHER TIME CONSUMING!!  ANYWAYS, UM… SO…  WHAT ARE YOU WEARING…?”  What…?!  Was… Was he  _ seriously _ doing this… here?!  Oh, god, Frisk was listening too…  “I’M… ASKING FOR A FRIEND”.  Oh my god.

 

“SHE THOUGHT SHE SAW YOU WEARING YOUR LONG SLEEVE SHIRT YOU LEFT IN EARLIER?”  Oh thank fuck it wasn’t what you thought it was.  You sighed in relief, rolling your shoulders before you remember what he was saying about Undyne.  “IS THAT TRUE?”

 

You pause pressing her lips.  “Yeah”.

 

“SO YOU ARE… WELL ALRIGHT THEN!  THAT’S ALL I NEEDED TO KNOW! WELL-”

 

“Hey, Papyrus?  You tell  _ her _ that we’ll be seeing each other real soon, okay?”

 

You hang up before he can answer.  “Come on, Frisk.  We should keep moving”.

 

Frisk frowned, and spelled Undyne’s name to you.  “Yeah, I saw her earlier.  It’s not important.  We can talk about it later, ok?”

 

They press their lips together.  Walking into the next hall, you are greeted with more echo flowers, and a sign on the wall, and fluorescent crystals resembling stars on the high ceiling.  Leaning into the eco flower you hear a voice:  _  “A long time ago, monsters used to whisper their wishes to the stars.  If you hoped with all your heart, your wish would come true.  Now, all we have are these sparkling stones on the ceiling…” _

 

You sighed and looked up, and felt… strangely lonely.  The cave was beautiful, but it made you feel claustrophobic for some reason.  You concentrated on the stones in the ceiling.  They really were a pretty sight.  Not quite up to par with the night sky, of course, but still very beautiful.  The sign read “WISHING ROOM” in a large font as you passed.  

 

_ “Thousands of people wishing together can’t be wrong!  The king will prove that!” _ an echo flower says quietly as you and Frisk pass.

 

Passing further down the hall, you encounter more and more monsters and even more echo flowers.  The monsters were at least interesting: little water tubs with faces and a bird cleaning itself in its hat.  It was pretty adorable, but the odd little conversations were more interesting to you than Frisk, who took great joy in playing with the monsters.

 

_ “C’mon, Sis!  Make a wish!” _

 

_ “I wish my sister and I see the real stars, someday…” _

 

_ “Ah, seems my horoscope is the same as last week’s…” _

 

You listened to the whispers.  That feeling is back.  Frisk tugs on your wrist, and points at the a large dead end.  They pull you over, before kicking it violently, the wall breaking like paper.  “Jesus, kid, are you a mad man?  How’d you know that would break?”

 

They made the sign for telescope, and pointed to one down the hall.  You gave them a look, but questioned no further.  Wandering down a damp pier, you warn Frisk of the slick path.  They hum in response.  You browse the writing on the walls, made vague and almost unreadable through time and wear.

 

**The War Between Humans And Monsters**

 

**Why did the humans attack?  Indeed, it seemed they had nothing to fear.  Humans are unbelievably strong.  It would take the SOUL of nearly every monster…**

 

**Just to equal the power of a single human SOUL.**

 

Drawn into the text, you follow just behind Frisk, who skips along, uncaringly, smiling at tiny fish below your feet, and tossing little pieces of cinnamon bunny to them.

 

**But humans have one weakness.  Ironically, it is the strength of their SOUL.  Its power allows it to persist outside the body, even after death.  If a monster defeats a human, they can take their SOUL.**

 

You start to sweat under the bandages.  You feel more aware of your soul’s thick cracks than ever before.

 

**A monster with a human SOUL… A horrible beast with unfathomable power…**

 

The next slate doesn’t even have words.  It just shows a strange creature, with unsettling eyes.  Curving horns and snarling teeth, it shouldn’t seem any different than any other monster in the Underground, but the way it stares at you, like it’s alive…

 

You press onward.  You and Frisk just barely fit onto the small plank of wood that abruptly moves on without your inclination.  Pressing on, at the stop, you step onto the new terrain.  It’s hard to see with such strange lighting, and your shadows seem very long, but it’s the stillness in the air that makes you shiver.  “I’ve got a bad feeling about this, kid…”

 

The grumble an agreement, as you press onward cautiously.  Frisk clutches your bandaged hand.

 

Abruptly, you are stopped by a cyan spear, biting into the ground where you were about to be.  You tug Frisk back, with a loud cuss that you aren’t very proud of.  A massive figure melts from the shadows like ghost.  She raises her hand, and summons more.  “FUCK we gotta go!” you hiss to Frisk, picking them up and hoisting them around your torso.  You could haul them quicker that way.

 

Racing against Undyne isn’t easy, but it’s not very difficult either, surprising you.  She isn’t very fast, and you suppose you owe that to her armor, but you have a few close calls that are a little too close for comfort.  You could have lost a foot.  

 

She’s easy to feign when it comes to her attacks.  With her so far away, all you can manage is some measly dodging.  Frisk grips your back and trembles.  “Hang on, kid,” you whisper, slipping by another round of spears.

 

Spying hope, you find a larger patch of that chocolate grass from before.  Eagerly, you dive into it, the ferns well above your head, with your crouching.  Undyne persists with her spear throwing, but they all fly above the tips of the grass, not grazing a single one.  You slide down, covering both you and Frisk in the grass, crouching low.

 

You wait, and immediately set to steady your breath.  You cradle Frisk to you and rub through their hair as the harsh clank of metal boots fills the air.  You simply closed your eyes, and covered the small kid even more, flicking your knife out.  The clank of heavy boots stops just shy of you, and snatches down in front of you-

 

-pulling up a familiar, smiling yellow child.

 

She almost drops him, looking frustratedly around, before furiously stepping out and stomping away.  You heave a sigh, flopping off of Frisk.  “I think we’re safe now…”  Frisk creeps out of the grass to the edge.  

 

“Yo… Did you see that?!”  MK whispered.  “Undyne just… TOUCHED ME!!!” He cried, bouncing joyfully on his tail.  “I’m never washing my face again…!  Man, are you two unlucky!  If you were standing a LITTLE more ahead…!  Yo, don’t worry!  I’m sure we’ll see her again!” He says happily, falling onto his face again, before running off.

 

You stand up and brush yourself off.  “Alright, Frisk, let’s-  Frisk?” You look up.  Frisk is nowhere to be seen.  “Frisk?!”  Soon, you see them running back the way you came.  “SHIT!!”

 

You hurry after them.  “Frisk, where the hell are you going, what if she comes back?!” You yell.

 

They motion back without looking, pointing to a small grey figure, as you catch up.  It quivers, almost translucent.  “Alright fine, but stay close, okay?” You grumble, and Frisk nods.

 

Coming closer, you see a small monster child that was almost identical to MK, though colorless and hollow, dull white eyes, sunken deep in its head.  “Hey, kid.  What are you doing here?”

 

The child paused, looking back at you, sighing.  The pupiless eyes staring into you.  “Have you ever thought about a world where everything is the same… except you don’t exist?” They whisper.  You feel a stab of emotion that such a young child feels this.  “Everything functions perfectly without you… Ha, ha…” It chuckles, turning from you, hunching its armless shoulders, water dripping from its eyes and into the water.  “The thought terrifies me…”

 

You sigh.  “You and me both kid,” you murmur.  You pull off your long sleeve shirt, stripping to your tank top.  You offer the shirt to the kid.  “Here.  You might need it”.

 

It looks up at you, eyeing the shirt as you use its sleeve to wipe their eyes.  It giggles.  “A sweater?  But it’s not cold out…  Ha, ha…” They give you a small smile, looking a little more at ease.  “You know, that does make me feel a little better about this… Thank you.  Please forget about me”.  They whisper, sitting down so their feet dangle off the dock, ignoring the long sleeved shirt.  

 

“Hey, c’mon kid, just take it”.

 

They shake their head.  “Please don’t think about this anymore,” they plead.

 

You wrinkle your eyebrows, but shrug, putting it back on.  Frisk tugs your shirt.   Can’t we help them…?  They ask.

 

You sigh.  “If they don’t want it, I won’t force it.  Come on, we have to keep moving.  Undyne may come back,” you say.  

 

They look back, and pat the child’s shoulder, before following you away from the edge.  As you walk away, you hear a tiny whisper,  _ “Ha… ha… good luck…” _  Turning back, the child has vanished.

 

Traipsing back to the room you were supposed to go into, you spy your boyfriend looking about the cave next to a telescope.  “Hey Sans”.

 

“hey.  i’ve been thinking of going into the telescope business.  it’s normally 50000g to use this premium telescope… but… since i know you… you can use it for free,” he offers.  Knowing better than to take anything from Sans after several days of salty beverages, and whoopie cushions under seating, you deny it, but Frisk takes the bait, seeming pleasantly surprised, but soon turns to a confused frown when they look through it, peering through it.  They frown at Sans and you can barely hold your laughter.  “What? You weren’t satisfied?  Don’t worry.  I’ll give you a full refund,” he says with a wink.  How can anyone hold a straight face like that?  You fall in love a little bit more.  Chuckling, you give him a peck on the forehead, and Sans’s cheeks flush, scratching the back of his head.

 

The kid makes an annoyed noise, and you spy them looking at their reflection in the water.  They splash a bit on their face, rubbing the painted ring off their eye.  They snort after a bit of contemplation and give your boyfriend finger guns, walking to the box in the corner.  “what happened to your hands, babe?”

 

You look down at them.  “I fell”.

 

Sans makes an empathetic noise.  “stay safe alright?”

 

“Yeah.  You too”.  Sans presses a kiss to your shoulder shyly.  You smile a little.

 

Frisk comes back wearing a dusty tutu.  “Where’d you get that?”

 

Found it.  Frisk signs innocently.

 

You roll your eyes.  Waving to Sans, you wander behind Frisk, down a map of glowing water and deep navy cattails and lilypads.  Passing some echo flowers, you hear a passing conversation.  It sounds like the kids from before.

 

_ “So?  Don’t you have any wishes to make?” _

 

_ “...hmmm… just one, but…  It’s kind of stupid.” _

 

The phone rings.  “Hello?”

 

“HELLO!  THIS IS PAPYRUS!!!  REMEMBER WHEN I ASKED YOU ABOUT CLOTHES?  WELL, THE FRIEND WHO WANTED TO KNOW… HER OPINION OF YOU IS VERY… MURDERY.  BUT I BET YOU KNEW THAT ALREADY, AS WHEN I GAVE HER YOUR MESSAGE, SHE SEEMED RATHER MOTIVATED.  AND BECAUSE YOU KNEW THAT… I TOLD HER WHAT YOU TOLD ME YOU WERE WEARING!  BECAUSE I KNEW OF COURSE THAT AFTER SUCH A SUSPICIOUS QUESTION… THAT YOU WOULD OBVIOUSLY CHANGE YOUR CLOTHES!  YOU TWO ARE SUCH SMART COOKIES!  THAT WAY YOU’RE SAFE AND I DIDN’T LIE!!!  NO BETRAYAL ANYWHERE!!!  BEING FRIENDS WITH EVERYONE IS EASY!!”

 

“Yeah, sure babe.  Tell Undyne her aim is shit for me, won’t you?”  You hang up in annoyance.  Not with Papyrus, he was just trying to do the right thing, but annoyance that you didn’t think to change.  Undyne probably would have known anyway.

 

_ “Don’t say that!  Come on, I promise I won’t laugh.” _

 

**The power to take their SOULS.  This is the power the humans feared.**

 

Walking along, Frisk trotted along next to you.  A pale tentacle arose from the water, enormous and smelling strongly of something garlic related.  Shifting closer, a massive looking octopus with an onion shaped head arose…

 

Revealing a cartoonically wide grin with large shining eyes.  “Hey… There… Noticed you were… Here…” it whispered.

 

“Keep walking, kid.  Don’t make eye contact,” you muttered into their ear

 

“I’m Onionsan!  Onionsan, y’hear!” It cried suddenly, flailing its appendages.

 

“Keep it movin’” you said, nudging the kid.  It was gazing at Onionsan in blatant confusion, and hesitantly obeyed.  Walking along, Onionsan kept up easily, occasionally filling the silence with idle chatter about it’s life, clearly lonely, bored, or perhaps a bit of both.  You felt a little bad for it, after it chatted about it’s friends moving to the aquarium and how Undyne was going to help fix everything.  “Hey… there…  That’s the end of this room.  I’ll see you around!  Have a good time!  In Waterfalllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll…” they called, sinking below the depths once again.

 

Passing into the next room, Frisk spies a monster in the corner, and hops over to her.  

 

***Shyren hides in the corner but somehow encounters you anyway.**

 

***CHECK**

 

***SHYREN - 19 ATK 0 DEF**

 

***Tone deaf.  She’s too ashamed to sing her deadly song.**

 

Frisk dodges a small music note from a small, melodic toot.  You snort in amusement, as Frisk signs excitedly to you to sing with Shyren, starting by humming a jazzy beat.  Shyren perks up and follows the kid’s melody.  Frisk waves you along, and conducts you with wild arm flails.  

 

Well, you guess you can go along with it this time.  You open your mouth and sing an old tune that  _ They _ both sang to you, when you were young.

 

_ “I hear that train a’comin’.  It’s rollin’ ‘round the bend, _

 

_ And I ain’t seen the sunshine since… I don’t know when… _

 

_ I’m stuck in Folsom Prison, and time keeps draggin’ on… _

 

_ But that train keeps a’rollin’ on down to San Antone”. _

 

You and Shyren harmonize well together, her tinkling Mezzo-Soprano giving a raw contrast to your own growly Baritone.  It had always been one of your favorite pitches to sing, after you’d gotten the hang of singing so low.

 

All the singing begins to draw the attention of other monsters, and you began to feel a little nervous, but Shyren offered you a hand, letting Frisk hum for a bit, to keep the increasing crowd entertained.  “I know it’s a little tough, but if we do it together, we’ll look less stupid,” she said with a toothy smile.

 

You nervously shifted, and decided to continue.  You couldn’t leave on a note like that.  Not when you have a potential jam buddy.

 

You carry on, the song rising and falling, and you spy Sans in the corner writing tickets in toilet paper and pen.  He gives you a wink.  Fortunately, the room can only hold about 20 or 30 monsters or so, so the crowd isn’t as intimidating as it could be, but it’s still more than you’d ever sang for.  Throwing your stress into the song, the crowd seems to eat it up.  They start throwing clothes.  Socks are going to be on the walls for days.

 

After the sock storm, Shyren is feeling as put out as you are, and gives the two of you a final toot of farewell, ending the song.  The monsters file out, giving you all pats on the back.  You look for your boyfriend but he’s nowhere to be seen.  You’re a little grateful.

 

At least Frisk’s in a better mood.  They’re bouncing on their feet, skipping while they hum the song to themselves.  

 

**This power has no counter.  Indeed, a human cannot take a monster’s SOUL.  When a monster dies, its SOUL disappears, and an incredible power would be needed to take the SOUL of a living monster.**

 

**There is only one exception.  The SOUL of a special species of monster called a “Boss Monster”.**

 

You frown.  This is the first you’re hearing of this.

 

**A Boss Monster’s SOUL is strong enough to persist after death…  If only for a few moments…  A human could absorb this SOUL.  But this has never happened.**

 

**And now, it never will.**

 

You tighten your jaw, thoughts humming.  So monster’s souls could be taken…  You suppose Boss Monsters weren’t very common.  If you had one of those…

 

_ No. _  You wouldn’t take that road.  Your job was to get Frisk through the Underground safe, and make sure Papyrus didn’t burn down the kitchen.  That was your job.  Not hunting down potentially innocent monsters.

 

If there was one thing you learned down here, it’s that monsters weren’t like humans.  They were a hell of a fucking lot  _ better _ .  They were kind, and caring, and didn’t mind if you accidentally fucked up, or said the wrong thing once in awhile; if you meant well in the end, and tried to make up for it, they always seemed to forgive you.  They always seemed to have a little more patience, a little more generosity, and a little more kindness, even if you weren’t very deserving of it.

 

You’re cut off, by rapid thumping of the kid running into you, while carrying an umbrella.  They apologize and stick the umbrella into the nearby horned statue’s arms.  A small tune cranks out from a music box in its pawed hands.  You sigh, the song calming almost all unruly and spiteful thoughts.  It was almost like you’d never had them.  Your shoulders lower, the small song giving you a slight smile.  Frisk appears affected by the song’s magic as well, smiling and swaying gently, hugging themself.  You pat their head, tousling their hair, and lead them along.

 

Grabbing an umbrella yourself, you carry it along, over you and Frisk, while they occasionally stamp into the puddles, and waved to your left.  Turning you spot MK.

 

“Yo, you got an umbrella?” he asks.  “Awesome!” he cheers, hopping under with you, occasionally joining Frisk’s puddle fiesta.  “Let’s go!”  You try to keep up with their incessant splashing.  “Man, Undyne is soooooo cool.  She beats up bad guys and NEVER loses.  If I was a human, I would wet the bed every night…  Knowing she was going to beat me up!  Ha ha!”.

 

You hum evenly.

 

MK rambles on about how cool Undyne is, but you don’t really pay attention, and instead focus on the smattering of rain.  The sound always seemed to soothe you.

 

Passing a long cliff edge, a large castle city looms in the distance.  That must be the Capital.  You put back the umbrella in a new can.

 

MK gives you hand pushing Frisk up, before you offer a hand to him.  He shakes his head.  “No worries!  I always find a way!  Don’t worry about me!”

 

**The humans, afraid of us, declared war on us.  They attacked suddenly, and without mercy.  In the end, it could hardly be called a war.**

 

**United, the humans too powerful, and us monsters, too weak.  Not a single soul was taken, but countless monsters were turned to dust…**

 

You sigh.  Roving along, you are suddenly stopped on a boardwalk with a pool of blue light.  “Oh shit,” you mutter under your breathe.  Several more appear around you, before striking up and becoming spears.  The clanging of boots is beneath you.

 

Here we go again.  You grab Frisk a second time, and they point you to the exit, falling victim to sliding on the wet rails, you find yourself almost shanked several times.  Huffing with exhaustion, you finally reach a dead end, and you press Frisk behind you.  Undyne’s hair billows behind her, and you bare your teeth, flicking your knife out, stepping back.  Undyne wastes no time, and with an angry slice of her arm, she rents the bridge from the rest of the port.

 

You grab Frisk, holding them to you, as they cling back.  You both scream, before hitting the ground with a solid thud, and everything goes dark.

 

…

 

…

 

Where are you?

 

It’s so dark here…

 

It’s like there’s no light at all…

 

Then, a terrible noise encompasses your entire being.

 

Imagine, if you will, the sound of a thousand men starved on an island, both of food and sex, for about a thousand years, yet still somehow kept alive.  Then put them in a room with the best steak in town, only available by fucking a pornstar.  The sound of them simultaneously fucking and eating at the same time, all while cars are being crushed in the background, multiplied by 10 could still not quite have the same melody that this horrible shriek made in your head.  You want it to stop so badly, you think you hear someone else screaming. 

 

And then, it stops.

 

You look out, and a pale face gazes at you, a twisted grin and dying light in it’s hollow sockets.  Hands with holes in the palms reach for you.

 

You’ve never been so grateful to wake up.  

 

Twitching awake, you raise yourself up, Frisk staring down at you.  “You okay kid?”

 

They nod, giving you a hand.  You look up.  You can’t hardly see the top.  They motion to the golden flowers beneath your feet.  You clench your hand.  Frisk could have died.  You could have died.  You grit your teeth.  “That’s it,” you growl.  You tug the kid along.

  
They make a curious noise.  “We’re going to go fight this sneaky bitch”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The sugar thing actually works, I've used it a ton of times when I fell on my skates and skinned myself skating. It never would get infected. Obviously, if you have a larger cut, seek medical help, or if you have antibacterial ointment go with that, but it works fine for small stuff or if you ran out and need a quick fix. Way back in WWII, soldiers would use it on wounds because sugars a natural blood coagulant and prevents infection. The more you know!!
> 
> Also, Johnny Cash is a great artist. I always really loved how humble he was, with himself. I kind of envied his kind of calm. Here's a link to the song used, Folsom Prison Blues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDktBZzQIiU


	8. In The Spirit of Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cute ghost that I would smooch, a lizard child, and you formally meet the fish guard. Joy oh joy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EDIT- 4/11/16: Oh my god, maybe I should leave things on a cliffhanger more often??? That's the quickest I've gotten comments! I swear, I left to use the bathroom, and when I came back, there were about 5 comments! It's nice to see so many people invested in my shit! Thanks! For sticking around! To look at my shit!!!

Stomping along the road with Frisk, you tromp in annoyance past garbage, while Frisk repeatedly tries to hoard things.  To keep them from collecting, you promise to come back for it later.  Grumbling to yourself, still upset over the encounter with Undyne, you pass a training dummy.  Pressing your lips together, you give it a fierce glance and pass without note, before a loud noise stops you, and the dummy hovers before the two of you.

 

“Hahaha…. Too intimidated to fight me, huh!?” It cackles.  “I am a ghost that lives inside a dummy.  My cousin used to live inside a dummy, too.  Until… YOU TWO CAME ALONG!”  It gave you both as fierce a look as a dummy could with button eyes.  “YOU,” he roared, snout towards you.  “YOU with your TERRIBLE jokes!!  PUN LOVERS like YOU deserve to be down here with the rest of the GARBAGE!”  Okay, that was a little harsh, you felt.

 

It turned its snout to Frisk.  “AND YOU!  You…” it growled like she was a cockroach.  “Shucks!  You were really boring!  They got annoyed and flew away, like any self-respecting spectre.  Well then.  Well then!  WELL THEN!” they roared.  “Boring people are the crumbs sticking to the face of this world.  HUMANS!  I will wipe you out of this world with a handkerchief of vengeance!”

 

***Mad Dummy blocks the way.**

 

Frisk makes an attempt to talk to the dummy, but to no avail.  It shouts some obscenities, as they summon several smaller dummies appear, and shoot tiny scribble looking puffs at you.  You slide artfully away, avoiding them.  Unfortunately, the Dummy wasn’t so lucky, and got hit by several.  “OWWWW!!  You DUMMIES!!  Watch where you’re aiming your MAGIC ATTACKS!”  They begin to sweat when they realize what they said.  Finding a way around, you direct Frisk about, so the attacks smack the Dummy.  

 

“Hey!  DUMMIES!  Remember how I said NOT to hit me!?  Well… Failures.  Failures!  FAILURES!” He shouts, the dummies looking a bit put out.  “YOU’RE ALL FIRED!!  AND REPLACED!!” He turns to you with a fierce expression after looking in a mirror for a moment.  “Now you’ll know my true power: relying on people that AREN’T garbage!”

 

***Mechanical whirrs fill the room.**

 

***Mad Dummy is hopping mad.**

 

You swing the kid around, the missiles from robotic dummies following to your surprise.  You swing them around again to avoid a hit, launching them at the Dummy again.  You growled in annoyance.  You didn’t have time for this!  As the Mad Dummy launched the bot’s final attack, you shielded Frisk from a few harsh attacks, them taking a missile for you, only falling to 17 HP, and you lowering even less.

 

The Mad Dummy snarls at the bots, firing them as well.  “Who cares.  Who cares!  WHO CARES!”  He shouts, hopping angrily.  “I DON’T NEED FRIENDS!” He shouts, a large knife winking into existence.  “I’VE GOT KNIVES!!”

 

You dodge the knife.

 

He sweats.  “I’m… out of knives...” He yells some nonsense about being at stalemate, before some familiar white droplets fall from the sky.  It snarls something about acid rain, before plunging back into the water, and a familiar ghost drops to your level.

 

“...sorry, i interrupted you, didn’t i?  as soon as i came over, your friend immediately left…” he cried quietly.  “oh no… you guys looked like you were having fun…  oh no…  i just wanted to say hi…  oh no………………….”

 

“Hey, it’s okay…” you comfort, exiting the FIGHT.  You feel like you know this ghost from somewhere…  Frisk is excitedly signing ‘Napstablook’ to you with a big grin on their face.  You turn to them, confused.

 

I met them in the Ruins!   They sign.    They blocked my way a while ago… 

 

Suddenly, it springs to mind where you saw them.  You snapped your fingers in realization.  “THAT’S where I know you from!  You’re that ghost from the Ruins that’s always playing Pink Floyd!”  You’d seen them after a few rounds in the Ruins, following the sound of jamming guitar, but only caught them once, and they disappeared rather quickly after a small ‘oh’.

 

He blinks in interest.  “you…. like them…?  Heh….”

 

You snort, lighting up a cigarette.  “They’re pretty good.  Their instrumentals are rad as all hell, but I’m more of a Bluetones fan, if I’m real”.

 

“oh, they’re really good too… um…. i’m going back home... for a little… you can ‘come with’ if you like…. no worries…. i understand if you’re busy…” and disappeared without a ‘boo’.

 

Feeling a little bit better after running into a fellow music lover, you follow the scent of ectoplasm, finding ‘Napstablook’ hovering over some water.  “my house is up there…. in case you wanted to visit… or in case…. you don’t……..”  The dour ghost murmured, disappearing again.  Deciding to try and boost the ghost’s _spirits_ , you visit north, finding identical blue and pink houses.  Figuring that Napstablook would live in the gray-blue house, you walked in.  The house was rather small, and covered in spider webs, cracks in the floor and walls littered the sad little house.  There were the essentials, like a computer, fridge, and TV, but also a rather impressive sound system at the south wall.  You instruct Frisk to eat a Nice Cream before they pass out, and use the last of the bandage on their cheek, where a small missile had barely marked them.  They offered a Nice Cream to you from your bag by the door, and shoot a concerned look at your stomach, charred slightly from repeated attacks.

 

“oh….. you’re hurt…. are you okay….?” The Nabstablook asked, concerned.

 

You chuckle.  “Healthy as ever, little buddy,” you grin.  Frisk is looking in their fridge nosily.

 

Scanning his hefty amount of CDs in a disorganized pile on the floor as the ghost offers a sandwich (that’s suspiciously translucent), you pop the one labeled ‘Spookwave’ into the player, curiously.  Napstablook ‘ooo’s to the beat.  Realizing that it was pretty fucking rude to smoke in someone’s house, you belatedly tossed it out the window, waving the smoke out.  You nod to the beat.

 

“after a good meal,” Napstablook replies thoughtfully, “i like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage…  it’s a family tradition… do you want… to join us…?” He asks nervously.  Frisk is already on the floor, looking at you expectantly.

 

“Yeah, sure dude”.

 

He leads you to the floor, Spookwave in the background.  Lying down, you repeat to yourself ‘garbage, garbage…’ Yeah.  That was you.  Garbage falls down a hole, with a little kid keeping them along.  It was a rather peaceful time.  Garbage didn’t have responsibilities or worries: it had already played it’s part and was calmly waiting, the world forgetting it.  You sighed peacefully.  It felt like all the cosmos knew how you felt, and stars rolled by.  God, you missed the sky.  You didn’t really mind the sun, but the moon and stars… nothing compared.  Tiny lights that sparkled and glittered, and the moon!  The moon with it’s gigantic cereal bowl milky thing going on… man.  You missed that.  Feeling mostly homesick now, you rose, and nudged a sleepy Frisk.  Napstablook rose and hovered close.

 

“That was… really nice… thanks….” He said, a small smile on his face.  You pulled a sleepy Frisk out, Napstablook waving goodbye, and walk down, before realizing you left Spookwave on.  Oh well.  He could turn it off when he felt like it.  His house, you know?

 

Your thoughts are cut off by a Woshua and an Aaron crossing your paths, Spookwave playing distantly.  The Aaron’s eyes widened and looked frightened, while the Woshua just looked confused, and vaguely annoyed.  “...what the HECK is that music?!” The Woshua grumbles.

 

“I-I DUNNO DUDE, BUT IT’S SPOOKIN’ ME OUT!” The Aaron cries, winking in distress.

 

“...this is worse than Shyren,” the water creature mumbles.  You furrow your brows in a stern look.

 

“Hey, don’t talk shit about Shyren, _pal_ , she’s cool,” you growl at it.

 

“Y-yeah, Shyren is way less scary,” the Aaron quivers, flinching at the harsh look.

 

The Woshua sneers at you.  “What would YOU know about music?”

 

“A lot more than you apparently.  At least I don’t constantly have to keep _cleaning up my act_ ,” you say with a sharky grin.  The pain in your side is worth the laugh.  

 

Woshua glares, and gives you a scrutinized look.  “....whatever.  I’m out of here”.

 

The Aaron wails after him, following out of the room.  “Geez, what a bunch of assclowns,” you grumble.  “C’mon kid.  We need a way back to Snowdin”.  Coming across an intersection, you head north to a store.  

 

A stumbling turtle with one eye, a magnifying glass, and an adventurer’s cap comes to the front desk, stroking his long, white beard.  “Whoa there, kids!” He croaks with a grin.  “I’ve got some pretty neat junk for sale!”

 

“Thanks.  Frisk, check for anything we might need, yeah?” You ask.  They give you a thumbs up as they snoop the store.  You lean against the counter.  “You been around here for a while, huh?”

 

He grins.  “Been around here for a long time, young’un.  Maybe a bit too long.  Studying history is easy when you’ve lived through most of it yourself!  Wa ha ha!” He chuckles.  “The name’s Gerson, kiddo!” He says, offering a clawed hand.  You shake it, his grip surprisingly firm.  He vaguely reminds you of your teacher.  You give him yours, and he smiles.  “Lovely name, for a tough kid like you!”

 

You nod to the Delta Rune.  “What the hell does the Delta Rune even mean.  I feel like I’ve been seeing it everywhere these days…”

 

He chuckles.  “Not surprised.  The meaning actually predates written history, with the under part there symbolizing us monsters, and the winged circle above it meanin’... uh… somethin’ else.  Most of us just accept it as the angel from a prophecy,” he says with a shrug, cleaning a green crystal with a handkerchief, swatting Frisk’s hands away from it.

 

“Prophecy?” you inquire.

 

“Oh yeah, the prophecy,” he says with a nod.  “Legend has it that an ‘angel’ that has seen the surface will descend from above and bring us freedom.  Lately, the people have been taking a bleaker outlook… callin’ that winged circle the ‘Angel of Death’.  A harbinger of destruction, waitin’ to free us from this mortal realm…” he muses.

 

“Sounds pretty punk to me”.

 

“Wa ha ha!  The youth of the day!  I just think the circle looks neat!” You chuckle together.

 

“Say…” you muse.  “Do you know anything about Undyne?”

 

“Undyne?” He squints at the gem, setting it down, seemingly satisfied and grabs another.  “Yeah, I know about her.  Bit of a local hero ‘round these parts.  Most of the Underground has a pretty high value on her, t’be honest.  She fought her way to the top of the guard through grit and determination alone.  Actually, she came through a while ago, askin’ about a pair that look just like you two… I’d be careful out there, kid,” he says with a chuckle, a gleam in his eye.

 

You press your lips together in suspicion.  “Tell me what she said,” you demand.

 

He waves the handkerchief about, in a lackadaisical manner.  “Sticks an’ stones, kid.  Ask a little nicer”.

 

“ _Please tell me what you know_ ,” you plead with a small growl to your voice.  

 

He peers over at you, noticing your desperate expression.  “You just make sure to take care of that kid, okay pal?” He murmurs.  “Be a real waste if Undyne… well.  We’ve all been known to do shitty things from time to time, even if we wish we hadn’t ain’t we?”

 

You breathe deeply, as Frisk tosses a couple of blue cans onto the counter and some crab shaped apples.  “What’s the quickest way back to Snowdin?”

 

He nods to the door.  “I’d take the Boatgoer.  They can take ya back in two shakes of a lamb’s tail!  Wa ha ha!”

 

You nod, grateful, examining a can of ‘Sea Tea’.

 

***Sea Tea- Heals 10H HP.  Boosts SPEED.**

 

You shove the cans at him, and take a few ‘Crab Apples’ to go as well.  Your side is starting to hurt.  You pack them in your bag after handing him the gold, and he waves goodbye.

 

Wandering down, you check a bare patch of land, branching into the river.  “Oh, come on!” You shout in annoyance.  

 

To your surprise though, a cloaked monster rose out of the depths with a splash, a cat head adorning the boat.  “Tra la la~  Need a ride?” It asks mysteriously.

 

“Uh, yeah.  Can you take us to Snowdin?” You ask curiously.

 

It nods pleasantly.  “Tra la la~ I can go anywhere~”.  Stepping into the boat, you help Frisk in.  “Hold on~” they say, as their boat rises up and tiny paws skim the water, the boat rushing by quickly.  You think you might be screaming.  Through it all though, the cloak of the Boatgoer doesn’t stir a bit.  “Tra la la~ The man who speaks in hands wants to speak with you.  Be sure to listen close~!”

 

After a long while of you screaming ineligible and Frisk cheering into the wind, you break the cold air of Snowdin at last.  “Tra la la~  See you soon!” They whisper, as you leave hurriedly.

 

You want a smoke, you feel your pocket, but the container is empty at last.  Rats.  None of the stores sold them, and you weren’t desperate enough to take dog treats from Doggo yet.  Eugh.  Dammnit.  Sighing in disappointment, you make your way to Papyrus and Sans’s.  Stumbling into the house, Papyrus greets you with open arms.  “(F/N)!!!  YOU ARE UNHARMED!!  AND ALSO… WET??????”  You look down.  Sure enough, your long sleeve shirt is damp with mist.  You sigh.

 

“Don’t worry, Pap, we’re just here to use the bathroom and hang out for a bit,” you reply, smiling wearily.  

 

Papyrus looks delighted, cheeks blushing.  “REALLY?!?!  WOWIE!!”

 

“You go chill with the kid, I’ll be down in a sec, okay?”  You head to the stairs, and lock the bathroom door.  You pull the shirt off, and dry it in seconds with Papyrus’s hairdryer (damn that thing was useful) and peel off your tank top to see the damage with a hiss.  The skin is a little shiny with a burn, but it doesn’t hurt much anymore, so you damp a towel with cold water and blot the burn.  You sigh as it’s soothed and check the mirror.  You are reminded that this could have been Frisk.  If you’d been a second too slow, or maybe not there at all...

 

Scars litter your chest and stomach, though mostly small, the worst was a stab wound in the side.  Your fingers brush it.  Your first fight.  You weren’t very smart, and lost tragically.  You never made the same mistake again, though, as a lesson well learned.  You were glad you’d never let the boys see this.

 

You looked down at your hands in shame.  You’d never gone a second without feeling disgusting, without feeling some sort of gross looking at yourself.  Feeling around, bandaged stomach, and you set yourself firmly.

 

You didn’t want Frisk to feel like this.

 

You didn’t want Frisk to feel like _you_.

 

You pull your tank down and take a deep breath.  Steadying yourself, you pad downstairs.  “Hey, kid, I’m just going to head over to the Nice Cream stand, okay?”

 

They gesture to themselves and get up.

 

“Nah, it’s just me.  I’ll be fine.  You go get some Cinnamon Buns and run around, and we’ll meet back in a few hours to meet up”.

 

They tug your sleeve to get your attention, looking to you with pleading eyes.   You aren’t leaving, right? 

 

You cock an eyebrow.  “Yeah, I am.  To get Nice Cream.  And maybe catch up with Ice Wolf a little,” you reply slowly.

 

But you’re coming back, right?  You promised to protect me. 

 

Their eyes shine with hope.  You feel like a piece of shit.  You growl in annoyance.  “Kid, I’m coming back, alright?  Just stick around in Snowdin till I get back”.

 

They press their lip and wilt at your tone.  They turn away, heading out the door, as you head over to Papyrus, and hug him.  “I’ve got some errands to run.  Stick with Sans for a bit, okay?”

 

He hugs you back.  That shit feeling is back with a vengeance.  “OF COURSE!!  DO YOU- OH WOWIE, WHAT’S THAT ON YOUR SHOULDER!?!?!  IT LOOKS LIKE ME!!!”

 

Looking over, you laugh.  You’d forgotten about the skull tattoo on your shoulder, a rose in the eye socket, petals falling like tears.  “Heh.  It’s a tattoo, Papyrus.  Humans make art on their skin and it stays forever”.

 

He rubbed it, and of course, it wouldn’t come off.  “JUST LIKE YOU SAID!!!  THAT IS….. SO NEAT!!!!!!”

 

You hug him tighter, burying your face in his chest.  “Thanks,” you whisper.  “For everything”.  

 

“(F/N)…?”  He questions.  

 

“Don’t worry.  I’m going to make everything right again”.  Turning away, you get a final, if hesitant ‘good luck’ from your boy, and head out.  You pull out Papyrus’s phone.  Checking contacts, there’s only five:  THE FIREY BARKEEP, THE SUPER COOLEST BROTHER SANS, THE CUTEST AND TALLEST HUMAN (F/N), SHORTER HUMAN PUZZLEMASTER, and THE HEAD OF THE ROYAL GUARD AND MASTER CHEF UNDYNE.

 

You click on Undyne’s contact, and it rings only once.  A boisterous female voice answers.  “PAPYRUS!  WHAT’S COOKIN’ BRO?!  ANY NEWS ON THA-”

 

“Do you want to know where the human is?”

 

The line is silent.  “Where’s Papyrus?”

 

“He’s fine.  I needed to contact you.  Do you want to find the human?”

 

“Yes”.  It came without hesitation.

 

“Head to the room closest to Snowdin, where there’s a bridge flower puzzle and a bell in Waterfall.  Get everybody out of there and come alone.  I’ll be there shortly to take you to them.  Got it?”

 

“Yeah.  How do you know this?!”

 

“...Just trust me.  I’ll be there soon”.

 

 _Click!_  You hung up.  You placed Papyrus’s phone in his mailbox.

 

You head to Diana’s shop.

 

“Hey again!  What’s up?  What’s with the look on your face” she asks, a concerned smile on her face.  You browse the store, finding just what you were looking for.

 

***”Bat” - Wpn AT 70**

***Give it a good swing.  It’ll be just like old times.**

 

You raise the metal bat, feeling its scuffed surface.  “Hey, Diana…”  


“Yeah?”

 

“Stall Frisk for me if they come in here.  I have a surprise for them, so hold them off as long as you can, okay?”

 

“Yeah!  Absolutly!  You’re such great family!”

 

“I do try to be”.

 

You pay for the bat and leave, heading to Waterfall.

You feel your knife in your pocket and cover it with your shirt.  You heft the bat onto your shoulder, before your feet hit the floor of the the room.  Undyne stands, tapping her feet, staring into the water below.  You clear your throat.

 

She grins.  “FINALLY!!  I’VE BEEN WAITING FORE-” she turns and the smile freezes on her face.  It turns sharp with surprise.  “-ver…”

 

“...”

 

“...Are you really that surprised?  You shouldn’t be”.

 

She pulls a crackling spear from the air, and snarls.  You chuckle.  “Yeah, you’re right”.  You draw the bat, and the FIGHT begins.  Your lips draw back.  “Let’s get to the point”.

  
***The wind is howling.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love me some Napstablook!! He's a real cutie, and one of my favorite side characters, along with Burgerpants.
> 
> Sorry, the next chapter will be the fight! I just like to hype things up. lmao.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed!


	9. One Punch Fish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *The wind is howling.
> 
> *The man who speaks in hands wants to speak with you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEEEYYYY I'M BACK!
> 
> Has it really been a month?

Undyne crushes her spear into the ground, cracking the rock.  “Seven,” she growls.  “Seven human souls… and King Asgore will become a god.  Six,” She pauses to take off her helmet and hang it on the spear.  She looks into your eyes.  “That’s how many we have collected thus far.  Do you understand?  Through your seventh and final soul, we can all be free.  Everyone can be happy”.  Her red hair whips in the wind.  She has a large yellow eye with a slitted pupil, and sleek blue scales, her hair tied back in a ponytail.

 

You stare at her frowning.  You take a deep breath and pop your neck.  You know how this is going to go.

 

She looks you over.  Just… looks at you.  It hits you the way that she’s regarding you.

 

Respectfully.

 

“...Alphys’s history books about humans were right.  I guess humans can be pretty cool.  Did you come here to surrender?  To sacrifice yourself so the smaller human can leave with the rest of us?” she asks with a curled lip.

 

You tighten your grip on the bat with your resolve.  “Nah,” you say calmly.

 

***You face Undyne head on.**

 

“I’m just tired of running”.  You raise the bat.

 

Her eye glints in the dark.  “EN GUARDE!!” she roars, and waves her spear at your SOUL, and you halt in place, seemingly held there by your SOUL.  

 

***Undyne attacks!**

 

The Captain of the Royal Guard grins at your plight and raises her hand, spears flying toward you in a wreath.  “As long as you’re GREEN you CAN’T ESCAPE!”

 

Out of reflex, you move to block with the bat, and it glows with a green aura, and solidifies into a circular field in front of the bat.  The spears crash into the shield, but they dissolve when they come into contact with the barrier.  You quickly spin to the attacks, but she’s going easy on you.  Like she wants this to be fair.  Give you a small taste of pacing.

 

You don’t appreciate being babied, but you understand the hidden desire for a fair fight.

 

You frown and roll your shoulder.  “You know, I kind of understand monster’s motivation for killing any humans that fall down here.  Even kids.  We probably did worse to you all during the War on the Surface…  But the kid… Frisk’s important to me.  I promised their mom that I’d get them through the Underground safely.  I’m hoping we can sort this all out here and now”.

 

Undyne’s eye glints, her shoulders back proudly.  “So, you’ll surrender?”

 

You laugh.  “Hell no!”

 

She snarls in annoyance.  “THEN WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?”

 

You narrow your own eyes, annoyed that you can’t move.  “I’m here to tell you to fuck off”.

 

She huffs bewildered.  “...Is this… SOME SORT OF JOKE???”

 

You growl in annoyance.  “No, I already _told_ you:  The kid is _my_ responsibility.  If I die, how can I take care of them?  Look, I get it, okay?  You’ve got a job, and everybody’s counting on you.  But this?  This is _my_ job”.

 

She roars, and clashes against you with her spear, the shield protecting the bat from the sharp edge.  She flicks her eye to your head and you swing the bat just in time to block the spear.  She looks at your legs.  You block those too.

 

She’s getting frustrated.  She especially glares each time you SPARE her.  “IF YOU REALLY UNDERSTOOD,” she cries out, sharp yellow teeth bared, “YOU WOULD GIVE YOURSELF UP!!!!”

 

She’s too easy to block, even with how quick she is.  She always looks at what she plans on attacking next.

 

She moves around you speedily, slashing angrily at whatever she can reach.  “You aren’t gonna kill that kid,” you say, crossing your bat with her spear, her weight bearing on you.  She’s so close you can feel her hot breath on you, despite her height advantage.  

 

“THIS IS WAR!” she roars, with a downward swing, and you have to take a knee.

 

“War’s… been over for hundreds of years…  Humans on the Surface… don’t even know Monsters exist anymore…”

 

“LIES!”  Her face is a battlefield of panic.  She sends a flurry of spears your way, and you rock with the blows.  “Why else would you come here?!  I’m not going to let YOU kill any more of us!!!”

 

You pause.   _Any more?_  “Hold on a moment!  I didn’t kill anyone down here!”  Maybe a few times you wanted to, but you weren’t going to tell her that.

 

She sneers, and CHECKS you.

 

**(F/n) LV: 9**

 

**AT-15 (+70 WPN BONUS)**

 

**DF-37**

 

**Wants to try something new.**

 

She points at your LOVE.  “OH YEAH?!?!  Well, WHY’S YOUR LV SO HIGH THEN, HUH??”

 

_Shit._

 

You shake your head.  You have a bad taste in your mouth.  You don’t want to think about this.  You want to move past it, forget about all of it.  “That’s from the Surface, not down here!”

 

“YEAH RIGHT!!” she replies harshly, crashing into your side violently.  “AND EVEN IF THAT _WERE_ TRUE, HOW DO WE KNOW YOU WON’T TURN ON US, HUH?  ONCE YOU KILL, YOU CAN’T GO BACK!!”

 

You don’t want to admit it, but it made sense.  She doesn’t know you.  And what if you _aren’t_ changed?  What if there’s still that violent piece of you that killed _Him_ is still in there, waiting to kill someone else?  Just a short time ago, you thought you were back home, panicking about Frisk.  ...What if she was right…?

 

What if you really were bad, just because of STATS…?

 

With your distraction, The Captain attacks, and you move just quick enough that you can avoid a complete slashing, though she’s slashed down your cheek.  Before you can recover, she grabs you by the arm holding the bat and hurls you over her head and into the ground.  You hear a **_POP!_ ** and _fuck_ that _hurt_.  

 

***Your arm is dislocated!**

 

***DEFENSE fell!**

 

You grimace at the familiar feeling.  “Wow,” you grunt.  “Forgot how much that fuckin’ hurts”.  You prepare a quick fix.  You pull harshly on your other arm, not letting go of the bat (though you wince), and slam yourself harshly onto the ground.  You feel it pop back into its socket, and you roll your shoulder to realign the muscles.

 

***You fix your arm.**

 

***DEFENSE rose!**

 

You turn to Undyne, standing again.  Her eye is wide.  She shakes herself and that respectful look is back.  She waves her spear and you’re blissfully your rusty orange color again.  She begins the fight anew, her attacks wavering a little more than usual.  She grows lax and rushes at you, and you swing upwards, creating a large opening.

 

Now is your chance.

 

You reach behind for your knife, pulling it out of hiding.  

 

You think of how excited Papyrus was for his cooking lesson.

 

You flick it open and plunge it into her side.

 

**1 4 9 9**

 

***Undyne has 1 HP.**

 

She’s coughing dust from her lips and onto the ground, bent on all fours.  “You… sick animal…  Waiting until my guard was down… just to kill me… huh?  I thought you came here to fight… fight fair?”  She grins humorlessly at you.

 

You quirk a smile and ready the bat, and kick her onto her back.  You raise it, and swing down.

 

Undyne faces you head on.

 

She’s surprised that the bat misses her face entirely and cracks into the ground, though.

 

She stares wide-eyed at the mess of cracks in the floor, glancing between the crater and you.  You kneel over her.

 

***(F/n) is SPARING you.**

 

“What the fuck?” is all the Captain says.

 

“Piss off, and leave the kid alone,” you says as calmly as you can with your shoulder throbbing.  You press onto hers threateningly, though you sheath your knife.

 

“Why… aren’t you killing me?” she rasps.

 

“Papyrus is really looking forward to his cooking lesson”.  You pause.  “It’d be a real bummer if he had to miss it because his boss was dead.  You pull the slightly squished Cinnamon bun out of your pocket, offering it.  “Sorry, it got a little squished from the fight.  Take it so you can make it back home”.  She’s not taking it, so you set it next to her.  She looks like she’d be less surprised if you slapped her.  It’s probably what she was expecting.

 

You hear heavy footfalls approaching.

 

“(F/N)?  AND UNDYNE?  WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?”

 

_Papyrus?_

 

You whip your head around to your boyfriend.  “Papyrus, what-”

 

You are interrupted by a loud **_SNICK!_ **

 

**5/52 HP**

 

You look down.  There’s a spear in your stomach.  You pause.  “Huh,” you say perceptively.  It dissolves almost instantly, and you regret looking at Undyne, because the look of horror she gives your stomach is going to haunt any dreams you might have in the future.  You fall to your side and into hard arms.  When did Papyrus get so quickly here.  There’s lots of shouting.  You’re coughing blood up.  The metallic taste is horrible in your mouth.  You’re scared.  It’s hard to breathe all of a sudden.  You’re taking in air and it’s coming out with blood, but it feels like nothing and _fuck why is it so loud you need it quiet you can’t think_.  

 

You’re being jostled and you make a noise of annoyance, and everything is coming into perception.  You try and concentrate on what you can sense.  It’s hard to see because of shock, you reason.  You try and break it down.  You move your arm to put pressure on the wound.  You can see a little better the; the cold air really is helping.  Papyrus is babbling incoherently on the phone, and he kicks the door to a building open and, hey you know where you are, and you actually have an idea now.

 

The air is warm in Grillby’s, soft and comforting.  Papyrus is setting you on chair, and cries, “SANS!! SANS!!! HELP, PLEASE!  OUR HUMAN IS HURT!!”

 

Dogamy and Dogaressa are the first to come over, but are soon followed by the rest of the dogs.  Dogamy helps you up while Dogaressa, Doggo, and Lesser and Greater Dog give their green magic to you.  You begin to feel a little bit better, but not for long, with sans staring numbly at you.

 

The little lights in his eyes are gone, and his skull is covered in sweat.  His hand is gripping the front of his shirt and his grin is more of a grimace, stretched too far and wide.

 

“You aren’t a monster…” begins Dogaressa.  “Or even a monster… are you?”  She looks at her bloody hand in horror.  

 

You don’t look away from your boys.  “No,” you say numbly.  “I’m not”.

 

“PLEASE, (F/N),” interjects Papyrus.  You don’t think you’ve ever seen a skeleton… cry before.  “TELL US HOW TO HELP!  PLEASE!! YOU MUSN’T DIE!!!  NOT LIKE THIS!!”

 

You heave yourself up with Lesser Dog and Dogamy’s help.  “Get me someone with fire magic,” you ask.  Your head is spinning a little at the blood loss, and you feel a little cold.  “And, hey, Papyrus…?  Sorry I lied,”  you say with a wince.

 

He looks like he’s going to throw something.  “YOU SHOULDN’T WORRY ABOUT THAT, YOU MAY BE DYING!!!!”

 

You snort, and blood comes out your mouth disgustingly.  “Oh, I am,” you confirm.  “I guess I just didn’t want you to worry”.

 

Papyrus looks pissed at that, and holy shit you’ve never actually heard him so scared sounding before.  “WELL, I AM VERY WORRIED NOW!!!”

 

You try a laugh in amusement, but surprise surprise more blood makes an appearance.  “Shit… get me Grillby”.  Sans holds onto your hand, and squeezes gently.  His sockets won’t meet your face.  Grillby tentatively flickers at you, hand over where his mouth might have been in what you assume is horror.  “Hey Grillz.  Wanna do me a favor?”  He nods rapidly.  You pull your shirt up and away from the wound.  You pant when your shirt sticks to the wound.  You know you’re scarred a lot down there, and it’s probably a hard sight to them.   Hell, it’s a hard sight for you sometimes, even with how used to it you are.  “Burn me”.  He steps back and rapidly shakes his head, and Sans tightens his clammy grip on your hand.  Doggo barks next to you.  You growl exasperatedly.  “I’m not askin’ ya to hurt me like _that_ , I’m askin’ you to cauterize it.  It stops the bleeding”.  You pause, looking at the wound.  It’s an ugly thing, sure to scar, but the wound is clean and it shouldn’t take too much heat to stop the bleeding.  “Grillz, please.  I’m dying”.

 

He hesitates and looks to Sans, who’s been quiet this whole time.  “If they think it’ll help,” and the tone is what gets to you.  He’s looking down, and you realize something.  He’s not expecting you to make it out of this.  The hopelessness of his gaze aches more than your wound.

 

Grillby rubs his hands together like he’s warming them on a cold day, and you feel the heat increase.  You pull the bandage off of your hand and ball it, and brace it into your mouth, effectively giving you a firm gag.  You lay back in Sans’s arms and grin as best you can to him around the gag.  Papyrus takes your other hand and gives you a grin.  “(F/N)!!  DON’T GIVE UP, OKAY?”

 

You give a small laugh behind the gag, and give Grillby a thumbs up around Sans’s hand.  Grillby nods and hesitantly lowers two fingers to the wound.  He winces as much as you do when he touches the wound.  Your body jerks and he pulls away after just a touch. You roar a muffled protest and point angrily at the wound.  Grillby makes an apologetic noise and slowly eases his flamed hand onto the wound and you growl behind the gag.  Your abdomen convulses and you’re losing yourself in it.  It feels so much worse a cigarette burn on the collar.  Finally Grillby pulls away and you look at the now stable wound.  You’re pretty proud, but dizzy with pain and blood loss.

 

You pull the gag out with a grunt, and grin with what you’re sure is red teeth.  “Thanks guys,” you rasp.  “But I’m gonna take a nap now”.

 

Your head hits the table, and the last thing you hear is Doggo’s howl of, _“Aw, shit!”_

  
  
  
  


…

  
  


…

  
  


It’s pretty dark in Marco’s house.  

 

It’s like all the color drained out of the living room.  Your teacher isn’t there, but someone else is.  They’re tall and hunched and sitting on the couch you had your first drink on.  

 

“Hey,” you call.  “What the fuck are you doing on Mark’s couch?”

 

The figure looks up.  It’s the same scarred, white face with a dripping, humorless smile on it.  Tiny lights appear in it’s eyes.  You’re more than a little put off, and take a step back.  It slowly signs.  Hello.

 

You’re sweating awkwardly.  How are you even sweating?  This is supposed to be a dream, right?  “Uh… hi?”

 

He cocks his head to the side and asks.  How were you able to get here?  I didn’t think I could bring you here...

 

You frown.  “You tell me.  I think I might be dead?  I don’t really know what that feels like…”

 

He shrugs.  Trust me, you would know.

 

“Uh, so who are you?  Hey, wait!  What the hell do you mean ‘bring me here’?!”

 

His form quivers in enthusiasm.  My name is Gaster.  I brought you here, though I didn’t expect it to work.

 

You cross your arms.  “Well what did you bring me here for then, ‘Gaster’?”

 

He tilts his head the other way like an inquisitive and goopy bird.  I’ve been watching you for quite some time.  Trying to contact you.  Let us get to the point; perhaps, you would be willing to do me a favor?

 

You frown.  “Look, I’m not an idiot.  There’s about two ways this can go: porn or you taking my SOUL after a devil’s deal.  Forget either of those and then you can ask me”.

 

He gurgles, static in your ears and stands.  He’s tall, taller than even Undyne.  He walks closer.  I am interested in neither of those things, I assure you.  I, Doctor Gaster, would like you to save me.

 

“From what?  If you’re here, aren’t you dead or something?” you grumble, fishing around in the cushions for a bottle you know is there.

 

Well, in a way, he says hesitantly.  You bring out the bottle, but the whiskey won’t fall, just sits frozen in the bottom of the bottle.  You put it back in disappointment.  I was erased from time.

 

You stare at him.  “How the fuck does that even happen?”

 

He sighs.  It is a very long story, and we have little time.  You will most likely wake up soon, It was a lab accident and I fell into the Core, but you!  You have enough determination to go back!

 

“And how the fuck should I be able to do that, genius?”

 

He waves a holed hand impatiently.  The world is shifting.  You’re waking up!  There’s not much time left!  Ask Sans about the machine in his lab behind the house!

 

“Wait, what-” you’re feeling like your drowning.  The world seems to be dissolving into a vortex.  Drip by drop Gaster is draining away like water in a drain.  His face melts upward.  “I don’t understand!  What does Sans know?!”

 

He howls to you in the same staticking mess of a language that you heard before, but it’s different somehow.  You know what he’s saying.  

 

He cries out desperately, reaching for you with a dripping hand.   **_“ DON’T FORGET ME!”_ **

 

The world dissipates completely.  

 

You sit up.  And you ache _everywhere_.

 

You’re in Papyrus’s room, in his bed, the covers over your legs.  Sans snoozes next to you, leaning on the bed with his arms under his head.  There’s bags under his eyes miles deeper than before.  

 

Your shoulder that had been dislocated is wrapped and bandaged around your chest effectively.  You look down at the hole in your stomach.  It’s wrapped in white with red stained cloth, with a small smear on the skin above it.  You wipe a finger on it, examine it, and decidedly put the sample in your mouth.

 

It’s sweet.

 

 _Sugar paste,_ you think in amusement.

 

Your stomach growls.  Damn, you’re really fucking hungry.

 

You get up, and pat Sans’s head, taking the blanket and putting it over his shoulders.  You’ve got a one track mind though, as you walk slowly and painfully down the stairs.  Papyrus is asleep sitting on the couch with Frisk lying over his legs like a dog.  You make your way to the kitchen, and open the fridge to see a container almost completely full of spaghetti.  You grab the closest and fullest container and start wolfing it down.  Papyrus’s cooking isn’t great and this isn’t the best work of his either, but right now, to your starved stomach, it’s the best thing you’ve ever tasted.

 

You’re almost done when you notice figures standing at the door way.  “(f/n)...?” comes breathlessly from a shorter figure.

 

You look up to see your two boyfriends and your charge staring at you with some sort of expression.

 

You wave.  “Hey, guys,” you say.  You pick up the bowl and rattle it around with the fork in it.  “You’re out of pasta,” you tell them helpfully.

  
You throw up on the floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO! Everythings cool now, and GUESS WHO'S GRADUATING??  
> My brother got back from Marine's tour in Dubai, so that's good!  
> Also, I have decided on a Hashtag for this on Tumblr: #TMOL Chocat So if you have any art or something you made, just post it in the hashtag, and I'll mention it in the notes so everyone can appreciate it! Or, if you want to contact me, my tumblr: http://hot-chocat71.tumblr.com/


	10. The Terrible, Horrible, No-Good, Very Bad Band-Itch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Your bandage itches. Sugar is itchy.
> 
> Papyrus cooks something edible.
> 
> You tell a story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of this was written at 2 in the morning, so feel free to correct my grammar.
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING: MURDER, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE REFERENCE, GORE, ABORTION??? I THINK??? IT'S IMPLIED.
> 
> There's also a Sci-Fi movie reference from one of my favorite movies ever! If you find it, tell me so we can geek over it!!!

“how ya feeling, babe?”

 

“Like I got hit by a truck and then another truck hit that truck and then everything caught fire.  Pretty good, considering everything that happened”.

 

“yeah.  it really seems like you’re **trucking along** ”.

 

You snort, letting your head fall back a bit.  You shift, finding it impossible to get comfortable.  To be fair, you did have a spear in your stomach, so that might have something to do with it.  You scratch at the bandage absentmindedly and Papyrus swats your hand.  “CEASE THE SCRATCHING, (F/N)!  YOU’LL INJURE YOURSELF FURTHER!!”

 

“But it itches,” you whine with a pout.

 

He bats your hands away in a similar fashion a cat might a ball of yarn.  “CEEEEAAAASSSEEE!!!!!!”

 

You sigh melodramatically.  “Yes, Mooooooomm”.

 

Sans chuckles, smiling quietly.  Papyrus looks to your chest curiously.  You snap your fingers.  “My eyes are up here, darlin’” you smile.

 

Papyrus blushes slightly.  “YES, I KNOW WHERE YOUR EYES ARE!!  I WAS JUST ADMIRING YOUR SCARS IS ALL”.

 

Your smile turns strained.  “Sorry,” you reply, looking down at your body self consciously, pulling up the sheet a bit.  “I know I’m not the prettiest in that sort of respect”.

 

Papyrus caught your hand, pulling the sheet down again.  He gives you a serious look as you squirm uncomfortably.  “NONSENSE, YOU ARE GORGEOUS!  I WAS JUST WONDERING ABOUT THEM?  WHERE DID YOU GET THEM FROM?”

 

You shift, biting your lip.  You point at one of your tamer ones.  “This is one I got in my first fight.  Lost in a minute.  Thought I could trick the guy, but he was a lot stronger and more experienced than me.  Shanked me pretty quick.  I woke up a couple hours later with a chunk missing outta my side.  It was really gross,” you rub it reminiscing.  Papyrus’s face seems whiter than usual.  You move to another, “The time I jumped out of a moving car,” you rove on, “the first time I went ice skating, when I fell onto a raspberry bush, oh!  And that’s the time I got bit by a dog,” you say, redirecting to one on your bicep that was a barely noticeable pair of teeth marks.  It had been a pretty weak dog; small, too.

 

“AND WHAT ABOUT THAT ONE?  IT LOOKS LIKE A RING!”  He points curiously at one more on your side.  “AND THE ONES ON YOUR BACK?  WHAT ABOUT THOSE?”

 

_Hot breath on your neck, the smash of a bottle end breaking, your side on fire, He’s twisted his face up in snarl, you’ve thrown a glass, he ducks, you’re in your room picking out the glass, sitting on the roof while you pour brandy on the circle._

 

You grimace.  “I don’t want to talk about that one,” you say blatantly.

 

Sans looks at you.  “you know we’re here for you right?”

 

“Well, yeah-”

 

“you know we won’t judge you for that, right?”

 

“Don’t hold your breath,” you grumble, face twisting.  

 

Papyrus sighs.  “IS…  IS IT ABOUT YOUR LV?”  His hand moves to the circular wound, his hand is hot and traces delicately around the scarred flesh of your side.  

 

You wince, turning away.  “Does it bother you?”

 

You feel Sans staring into you in the way only the two brothers can.  “ **does it bother you?** ”

 

You grimace, hands clenching sweatily against your crossed arms, scooting away from Papyrus’s lost hand.  “It’s… not really that I don’t like talking about it.  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t _mind_ per say, but…” you’re a little hesitant.  Your eyes keep roving around the room, trying to avoid their gaze.  “I guess I just don’t like to think of it as a… part of me?  I don’t want you to think that it’s all that I am.  I’m- I’m trying, you know?  I really have, I just…”  you trail off uncertainly.

 

“YOU KNOW WE WON’T JUDGE YOU,” Papyrus whispers, uncharacteristically quiet.

 

“You can’t know that”.

 

“neither can you”.

 

You snap.  “What, you think I’m some sort of joke?  I killed someone!  I-” you swallow at Papyrus’s shock, Sans’s lights in his eyes dim with sweat on his skull.  “You don’t know what kind of monster I am,” you turn, curling on yourself.

 

“(F/N)...” Papyrus protests.

 

“I’m tired”.

 

It’s quiet for a while, before Papyrus leans down and presses his teeth to your head.  You curl tighter into the sheets.

 

Sans leans over you, his breath at your ear.  “we care.  you know that, don’t you?”

 

You stay quiet, before Sans turns the light to Papyrus’s room off, leaving you with just the scent of Papyrus’s bedsheets and the quiet shaking of your held back sobs.

  
  


\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


_Wake up._

 

Frisk opened their eyes to their body aching and a beam of sunlight hitting them right in the face.

 

Sitting up, the place was dark, save their small spot of sunshine.  Looking down, a patch of soft flowers  lay beneath you.  They must have broken your fall.

 

_Get up._

 

You look around in confusion, hesitantly standing on wobbly legs.  Maybe if you walked along, you would find whoever was speaking.  Walking along, You happen upon a single flower.  You leaned down and smiled at it, before it actually spoke.  “Howdy!”  It said with a friendly grin.

 

“I’m Flowey!  Flowey the Flower!”

  
  


\---------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


You wake up from your short nap.  You don’t think you’ve slept an hour.  You feel horrible.  Your bandage itches, you might be oozing, and you feel terrible for shutting the two brothers out.

 

You fumble down the stairs, grabbing a large fluffy jacket with a mustard stain that looks and smells like Sans’s.  There’s ketchup packets in the pocket.  Definitely Sans’s.  You walk down to see Papyrus cooking with Frisk in what appears to be sleep clothes: a pair of Elmo PJ pants and matching shirt with a scribbled in ‘DON’T’ over the printed on ‘Tickle Me!’.  You didn’t know he had those.  Sans has a pair of reading glasses taped to his skull and reading his joke book.  Sans looks up lazily when you walk in.  Frisk jumps to their feet from the counter and runs to you, before halting hesitantly in front of you; then, they cross their arms, scowling at you.   _You lied_. They sign.

 

“I’m sorry,” you reply.  You are.

 

They nod, and hug you around the knees, feeling them wet as their shoulders shake.  “Aw shi-crap kid, don’t cry, I never know what to do when kids cry, ah, darn it,” you say, awkwardly patting them on the back.  They sniffle with a laugh and nod, giving you another hug.  You chuckle.  “You’re gonna have to let me go kid.  I can’t pick you up with this hole in my guts”.  They snort out a laugh, wiping their eyes and nose.  You shoo them to the doorway.  “Go on.  I’ve got boring grown up stuff to talk about with my squeezes, okay kid?”  They look at you obstinately.  “Go on.  We can hang out later, and talk to Toriel too, okay?”

 

They slowly leave, shooting you hesitant look.  You sigh when they finally leave.  “so.  what boring adult stuff do you have to lay on us?” Sans asks, putting his book and glasses away.  Where did they go?  They seemed to dissipate.  

 

Papyrus turns to you and looks to you with interest.  “YES, WHAT IS IT, (F/N)?”

 

Your hands are a little sweaty.  You shift your feet nervously.  “I, uh.  I’m sorry I just sort of shut you guys out earlier.  You were just trying to help and it wasn’t really right of me to just… shut the door on you like that”.

 

“it’s ok, (f/n).  You didn’t **lock** us out for too long,” sans says.

 

Your lips quirk.  “Sans, be serious.  I’m trying to apologise”.

 

“how can i be serious if i’m sans?”

 

“SANS!!!!!”

 

You snort at the stupid joke despite your best efforts not to laugh.  You smile a little easier now, and Sans has a small twinkle to his eyes.

 

Papyrus sighs, and glances forgivingly to you, stirring his pot.  “DO NOT WORRY, DARLING.  WE WERE… BEING A BIT PUSHY, AND THAT IS OUR OWN FAULT!”

 

You frown.  “No, Pap, that’s not your guys’ fault.  I was the one who just cut you both off.  That wasn’t okay.  So this is me apologising to you”.

 

Papyrus looks at Sans.  Sans looks to you.  “don’t sweat it, (f/n).  we forgive ya”.

 

Papyrus nods.  “INDEED!”

 

You swallow.  “I’ll tell you, if you really want me to,” you say.  Sans looks up seriously.  Papyrus turns to you, spoon out of the pot, spilling a little on the stove.  It looks like soup.  “I uh.  I just don’t really know how to start, you know?  Like, yeah okay.  I killed someone.  How do I explain that?”

 

You shift around.  “if you don’t want to talk you don’t have to **spill** it”.

 

You quirk a smile, but it’s gone as soon as you show it.  “I should.  I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready, but now’s as good a time as any”.

 

Papyrus sighs, and turns off the burner.  He serves a bowl to you.  “YOU MAY TELL US AFTER DINNER THEN.  I WON’T HAVE MY GLORIOUS FOOD BE BROUGHT DOWN BY UPSETTING STORIES!!  NOW EAT UP!!  YOU MUST GET BETTER!”.

 

You smile.  Grabbing a smaller spoon from the drawer.  “Thanks.  Smells good, babe”.

 

Papyrus flushes with a “NYEH!” and offers a bowl to Sans who actually seems like he might eat it.  Papyrus shoos Frisk in, and they immediately begin scarfing the food down.  You take a spoon yourself.  It’s good.  Like, _really_ good.  Surprisingly so.  It tastes an awful lot like… “Pap, did you make chicken soup?  It’s great”.

 

His chest puffs, and he sticks his chin in the air, blushing.  “NATURALLY, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WOULD MAKE SOMETHING EQUALLY AS GREAT AS HE!!  I ASKED THE GREAT DOCTOR ALPHYS WHAT HUMANS EAT WHEN HURT, AND SHE SAID CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP HELPS SICK HUMANS, AND GAVE ME A RECIPE”.

 

You hum, swallowing more down gratefully.  “Well, tell Dr. Alphys I said ‘thanks’”.  You hadn’t realized how hungry you were since you’d thrown up yesterday, only able to keep down a little milk and bread.  The broth is full of too large chunks of chicken and spaghetti noodles that are  too long to be in soup.  The composition could use work, but it’s pretty great.  Even Sans eats all of his food.  Though you never see him eat, his bowl is empty by the time you all finish.

 

Frisk helps Papyrus clean up and you itch your bandage.  “quit itching your bandage,” says Sans.  

 

You frown.  “But it itches…”

 

Papyrus smacks your hand away.

  
  


\------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


Frisk runs to the ‘friendliness pellets’ of their new friend Flowey.

 

_Stop!  He’s going to hurt you, you idiot!_

 

You frown.  They wouldn’t do that, you think as you reach to the first pellet.  They have no reason-

 

_CRACK!_

 

You almost fall over, as your skin absorbs the pellet- no- _bullet_ into you, pulling pain through your veins like hot fire.

 

**HP  1/20**

 

_You idiot!_

 

“You IDIOT,”  The flower taunts, mimicking the voice, face twisted.

 

 _Get out of here!  The exit’s just past him!  You can make it if you’re quick!  Hurry!_  

 

“In this world, it’s KILL or BE KILLED!  Well, at least you’re more fun than the OTHER-”  They are cut off by a silver fire like a star racing into them.  A small hole is left where they were.

 

A motherly face with horns and teeth break the dark.  “What a terrible creature, torturing such a poor, innocent youth…”

  


\----------------------------------------------------------------------------

  


You sigh, closing the door to Papyrus’s room, as Sans helps you into bed.

 

You wait nervously.  “I uh.  I don’t really know where to start on this, you know?”

 

“TAKE YOUR TIME.  THERE’S NO RUSH!” states Papyrus with an encouraging smile.

 

“maybe the beginning?” suggests Sans.

 

You scrunch your nose.  “That’s a little cliche, don’t you think?”

 

Sans shrugs.  “Start wherever then,” he says, sitting on your foot as Papyrus sits in the chair facing your bed, attentively.  

 

You tap your fingers nervously.  “I… I don’t know how parenting works in the Underground- with monsters, I mean, but I don’t think,” you look at them hesitating.  Papyrus is patiently confused at where you decided to begin, though Sans looks just patient.  “...I don’t think I ever knew a monster to hurt their own kid,” you finish.

 

Papyrus grabs you hand in comfort, though looks at you in confusion. “I…  I DON’T UNDERSTAND.  WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?”

 

You glance at Sans.  The lights in his eyes have gone out and he’s gone still.  You look down, squeezing Papyrus’s hand.  “It used to just be my mom,” you tell, voice quiet.  “He… my dad, you know?  He… I don’t really remember an exact day it happened.  He used to be, well, not great, but he was okay.  I don’t think he ever really wanted a kid, sometimes.  It was really hard to tell,” you say scratching your head.  “I didn’t even notice at first, I thought they were just arguing, until I heard it.  I looked out of my room to see Mom on the floor.  

 

“When I was a lot younger, I got sick of it.  Mom wasn’t going to leave, she was too scared, and he hadn’t hit me yet, so I thought that I could talk him into letting us go,” you laughed.  It was a cold laugh.  “He didn’t.  The second I said I was leaving and was going to take Mom with me… He got pissed, in short.  Went yelling on about how we were little bastards and ungrateful, though for what I’m not sure, and fucking beat me.  I remember waking up with a black eye and a broken arm.  My mom told the hospital I got beat in an alleyway, and that was it.  I remember her telling me not to piss him off anymore, but…” you remember how upset and fearful Her face was on the way home.  How desperate She was when she told you to stop with trying to get away from him.  “I didn’t listen.

 

“After a while, I learned how to fight, started hitting him back, learning how to block and dodge.  I… There was a ring in town.  A place where you could fight and get a lot of money really quick.  My teacher, Marco?  He was one of the best”.  You remember the night you met Mark.  You’d watched his fight in awe.  He took hits, but they almost seemed to bounce off his arms and abdomen.  You’d come to watch fights, learning so you could earn money someday too.

 

You’d practiced with a knife outside after, accidentally cutting your hands.  Marco coming out soon after.  He’d commented on your bruised face, and you told him to fuck off.  He’d grinned that odd grin with a few missing teeth, and showed you how to do the trick right.  He’d asked you how you got your face like that some meetings later, and he’d started to really teach you.  “He gave me my knife, taught me how to really defend myself.  Brought me into the ring as his apprentice.  I started putting money away to get us out.  Find us a house or a hotel or something far away.  I was going to get us _out_.  That was when she got pregnant,” you say, clenching your fist.  They’ve been silent this entire time, but Papyrus’s breath catches.  You’re too ashamed to look at either of them.  “She didn’t tell him, but I noticed.  She didn’t tell him until he finally figured it out.  Noticed how big she was getting.  She… She almost lost it, if I hadn’t stepped in.  

 

“She ran out, and that was when I told her.  I told her we could get out.  We could just leave while he was gone and he wouldn’t even notice until we were gone.  I had a lot of money saved up; enough for us to get us and our shit out of the house and get some place safe.  Take care of food and rent for a long time, but” you tighten your hand into a fist around Papyrus’s and he squeezes you back.  Your face pulls into a strange grin.  It might have been a grimace.  Why does your face feel wet?  You scrub it with the jacket’s sleeve.  “That didn’t happen.  I told her to pack up while He went out.  I went upstairs and… it was just for a second!  I forgot something, and he just, he came in and… fuck, it’s my fault, if I hadn’t… If I’d just planned better, or brought Marco with me, maybe…” you trailed off, sniffing.  “He… he beat her in.  I came downstairs with the bat I kept under my bed, and god.  There was so much blood.  He’d cut her throat.  He’d got one of the kitchen knives and got her in the stomach, and I just got so fucking _mad_.

 

“We were just so _close_ to getting out of that _shithole_ and...!  He just had to come back and fuck it all up!  … He didn’t even see me coming.  I just came up and hit him with the bat.  He dropped like bricks, and I tried so _hard_ to save her, but… She wouldn’t stop _bleeding_ and she was so _scared…_ she kept grabbing me and trying to talk, but she just… she just stopped grabbing and trying to talk and she… it’s my fault.  I should have tried harder, I killed her, I let her _die,_ maybe if I’d gone down quicker, or if I’d waited for a better day…  I killed him”.  You look up.  Papyrus has tears rolling out of his eye sockets.  Sans is looking at the floor, expression blank.  “He was just getting up, going to cut me too, maybe.  It was self defense until that point.  But… I just wanted out _so bad_ and then he killed Mom… I just kept swinging until he stopped moving.  His skull just cracked open,”  you remember how much he _bled_.  His skull looked like some weird gorey flower, and the floor was just covered in it.  

 

“I remember how calm it felt.  He wasn’t going to hurt me any more.  He couldn’t hurt Mom anymore.  But I killed him, and I got so scared.  The police… the human Royal Guard?  They were going to come, and maybe they would kill _me_ , and… I just ran.  Got out of there as soon as I could.  I didn’t even remember grabbing my backpack, I just started running, and we lived near the mountain, and… I just found a hole.  I just… I figured if they found me, they might make it slow… I thought maybe if I just jumped it wouldn’t hurt as much”.

 

“And… now I’m here…  And no better than him.  I’d hate to think of what would happen if they saw me now… ha ha…”  You grin humorlessly.  “He fucked me up,” you say with your wide grimace.  You aren’t crying anymore.  You’re just tired.  Tired of lying to yourself, you boyfriends, your new friends.  Fuck, the dogs, Ice Wolf, and Grillby probably hate you now.  Lying all this time to them.  MK too…

 

“I- THAT’S SO…”

 

 _Here it comes…_  You await certain rejection.

 

“ _HORRIBLE!!!_ HOW COULD HE DO THAT?!”

 

_Wait, what?_

 

You look to Papyrus for the first time since you began, and he’s got one hand over his mouth, with fat tears streaming from his eyes, sniffling small amounts of snot back.  He’s trembling with effort.  “HOW COULD ANYONE BE SO HORRIBLE?  AND TO YOU…!  HIS CHILD!!  PARENTS ARE SUPPOSED TO CARE AND LOVE THEIR CHILDREN UNCONDITIONALLY!  HOW… _HOW COULD HE-_ ” he breaks off into bawls, before wrapping you in a heavy hug.  “IS THIS WHY YOU WERE SO AFRAID TO TELL US??  YOU- _HE_ ISN’T ALL YOU ARE, (F/N)!  YOU’RE _FRIENDLY_ , AND YOU LIKE TO TALK WITH THE DOGS, AND YOU HAVE A GROSS SMOKING HABIT, AND YOU DRINK COFFEE THAT YOU DON’T EVEN _LIKE_ , AND YOU CARE SO MUCH ABOUT ME, AND, AND SANS IS HAPPIER THAN EVER DESPITE THE NONSTOP TERRIBLE PUN WAR THE TWO OF YOU WAGE, AND… YOU AREN’T LIKE THAT!  YOU AREN’T!!” He’s crying onto you.  You look Sans in the eye.  He looks as tired as you feel.  But he isn’t… disgusted.  Neither of them.  

 

Sans looks so _so sad and exhausted_ and Papyrus is snotting all over the borrowed hoodie, and you really want to sleep, but you’re so so relieved.  “ **you’re nothing like  h i m** ”.

 

They don’t think you’re shitty.   _They don’t think you’re shitty!_

 

You’re hugging Papyrus back, “You… you honestly believe that?”

 

Papyrus pulls back and actually picks Sans up by the turtleneck’s collar and drags him into bed with both of you, him having climbed in himself.  The bed is too small for all three of you, and you just end up sandwiched ( _sans-_ wiched?) between the two brothers, you sort of on top of Papyrus, and Sans, sort of on top of you, but kind of smushed into the wall.  “‘course.  you aren’t the one who hurt someone for years and years that you were supposed to **love**.  You were defending yourself”.

 

You try and find shelter in hiding your face Papyrus’s ‘DON’T Tickle Me!’ shirt.  Elmo, save you.  “But I killed him”.

 

“THAT WASN’T YOUR FAULT!  HE DIDN’T GIVE YOU A CHOICE!  HE MADE THE AWFUL, HORRIBLE CHOICE OF BEING SO HORRIBLE!  IT IS NOT YOUR FAULT, AND DON’T YOU EVER MAKE THAT ASSUMPTION!”

 

“I’m not sure I can believe that”.

 

“THEN I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL HELP YOU _UN_ BELIEVE IT!!!  I’M SURE UNDYNE WILL HELP!  SHE FEELS… VERY BAD ABOUT IT”.  Papyrus taps you to look at him.  His eyes are serious, though a little blue around the eye sockets from crying.

 

“She tried to kill me, Pap,” you deadpan trying to recover some normalacy.

 

Papyrus flusters.  “SO DID YOU!!!”

 

You pull back with offense, into Sans, who nuzzles your cheek.  “I did not!”

 

Papyrus looks as though he might have rolled his eyes, if he had them.  “SURRRE…”

 

You narrow your eyes.  “Is that sass, I detect from you, Mr?  I’ll have you know, I tried just lowering her HP until she couldn’t move and would just listen to me!  You’re the one who ran in, unannounced!”

 

Papyrus winces, and you immediately regret your choice of words.  “I DIDN’T MEAN TO STARTLE HER!”  You vaguely remember a regretful and scared, blue scaled face with one large, yellow eye.

 

You sigh, nuzzling him hesitantly.  “It’s your fault as much as it was mine and hers.  Which is none, by the way.  We all were jerks”.

 

“THEN WE MUST UN-JERK OURSELVES!!  DE-JERKIFY US!!”

 

“there has to be a better way to **stroke** that sentence”.

 

“Sans, **lay** off”.

 

“AAAHHHRG!!  STOP MAKING PUNS OVER SUCH LEWD SUBJECTS!!!!  I’M GOING TO **SLEEP**  ON THIS MATTER, AND YOU SHOULD DO THE SAME!!"

 

You stuff your face into the pillow, trying to smother your cackling at the dirty joke your, possible not as innocent as he seems, boyfriend made.  Sans chokes on a loud laugh above you.  You feel warmer than you’ve ever felt in your life.  You remember the day Marco introduced you to his little ring of friends he called family.  When you played Euchre with them, and slowly began learning ASL from the tall, buff man you nicknamed Chomper.  This was so, so much better than you’d felt there.

 

You fall asleep to the skeleton brother’s snores, and two pairs of arms securing you warmly.

 

For what feels like the first time, you sleep through the night, without disturbance.

  
  


\------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


_Bear left!_

 

Frisk follows the voice.  It’s led them so far, teaching them so much.  They tell you where to go, and have never failed you yet.  You dodge the slow moving fireball, unharmed.  

 

_Spin out and under!_

 

 _Got it!_  You tell the voice.  You follow instructions, SPARING Toriel.  She’s so sad.  So lonely.  She’s trying to protect you, but you have to keep moving.  You aren’t safe here either.  You hardly know her.  She could hurt you too.

 

But she stops and she weeps, small smile on her face.  “You could never have stayed here, could you?” she whispers.  You shake your head, sadly.  “If you want to leave… at least wait.  I have a friend, they live out of the Ruins.  They are strong and brave, and can guide you through the Underground.  They can keep you safe.  You will wait with me for them… won’t you?”

 

You nod, smiling sadly.  She goes to take your hand, though she stutters, drawing back slightly, as though hesitant.  You take Toriel’s- your Mom’s hand, and smile to her.

 

She smiles sadly back, wiping a tear, and brings you upstairs, speaking more of her brave friend.  Following along, you comment to your friend, _That was tough!  Thanks a lot, you really helped!  How’d you know what she was going to do?_

 

The voice sounds like it shrugged.   _I know how she fights.  I’ve seen her practice._

 

 _Do you know her?  Who ARE you anyway?  Are you a monster too?_  You question, walking up the steps.  Toriel gives you some pie, ruffling your hair, and sends you to your room to get some rest.  “

 

The voice is silent.

 

 _Hey,_ you call.   _Are you still there?_

 

 _Yeah,_ replies the voice decisively.   _I’m a monster.  The strongest one!  Or, I was, anyway._

 

 _What happened?_  You ask.   _Where did you go?_

 

 _I died._  They replied plainly.

 

 _How?_  You ask, aghast.   _Why?!_

 

 _Humans._ The voice turned hateful.   **_Humans killed me_ **.

 

_I’m… I’m so sorry.  You’ve been so nice to me.  You didn’t deserve that!_

 

The voice sniffed.   _...It’s… It’s okay I guess.  It’s not your fault._

 

You bite into the butterscotch-cinnamon pie gratefully.  It warms your stomach.   _What… what was your name?_

 

 _My name?_  The voice asked curiously.

 

_Yeah!  Who were you?_

 

The voice pauses.  You eat some more, waiting patiently.

  
_My name is Chara._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: *writes angst*
> 
> Me: *immediatly resolves it bc i'm a pussy and like happy endings*
> 
> I just want the reader to be happy. I'm the girl in Mean Girls that wants the smile cake and everyone to be happy and eat it.
> 
> Also: Really excited to write more Undyne!! I thought I maybe didn't write her well, but aparently I was wrong, considering how you guys commented! Feel free to tell me all abt ur feels!! I like hearing! Tell me how much I possible did or didn't hurt u!
> 
> Also, Euchre is a French/Canadian game. I'm from Michigan, and we get a lot of tourists in Detroit. I learned it from my mom and her friend (a brewery owner) at their brewery.


	11. TEASER/EXTRA SCENE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A teaser of what is to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I haven't updated in a month, but the only computer I can use is at my Dad's. To fix this, I've finally earned enough money to buy myself a laptop!! I'm really excited to start using it! I also had my grad party, my mom's boyfriend came over from Texas for a weekend, and I'm leaving for Texas to visit him for almost a week, so the update will take some time, as I've only been working on and off of it, so I typed you up something just to get you excited.

You know a lot of things.  More things than most would give you credit for.  You couldn’t blame them; you know you act a little oddly, and were more in touch with your childish side than most, but if there was one thing you wouldn’t apologize for, it was liking what you liked.

 

Maybe your demeanor was over the top, but it rarely bothered you that people didn’t treat you like the adult you were.

 

But you know a lot of things.  

 

You’re more observant than Sans gives you credit for.  Sans should know too, because he  _ knows _ things too, but your brother… 

 

You know things.  How to deal with trauma is not one of them.

 

Your shorter human lover was sleeping soundly, encircled in two pairs of boney arms, your brother resting on their back.  (F/n)’s mouth was open slightly, small breaths giving hints of snores, their hair falling over a peaceful face.  You rub your hand along their side, catching a small flinch away from the touch.  Their face twisted in a sleepy discomfort.  You freeze allowing them to settle, before tracing the map along their scars again.  

 

You nuzzle their hair, inhaling quietly.  You liked the way they smell.  Without sweat glands and flesh, you and Sans just smell like the places you’d been or the cologne you put on.  (F/n) smelled  _ alive _ .  They smelled like wood chips, smoke, the amber liquid that came from their flask (a kind of sauce?), and a copper smell that wasn’t copper.  There was also something completely individual smelling about them.  Something with the musk of sweat and hard work and satisfaction.  

 

They did not smell like trauma.  They didn’t look like you imagined someone with trauma would look like.  You had always imagined trauma victims to be like Hamlet, always dour and mildly annoyed, but that wasn’t like what (F/n) was like.  They offered help to children.  They played poker (and often won).  They ran with him in mornings.  They pet dogs.  They laughed at bad jokes, and made them in turn.  

 

Perhaps trauma was something else entirely, you considered.  You know there to be an entire world out there, above ground.  According to films and books that you had found, it was quite large.  In a place that large, anything could happen.  Possibilities were endless.

 

Endless possibilities.  You used to be enamored with the idea.  Now your opinion was less than good of it.  Perhaps even… bad.

 

You noticed lots of things (F/n) had done in the beginning that had held no real reason to  _ be  _ done.  Their eyes flicking around a room before entering.  They often looked around the room to doors and windows and fidgeted like they weren’t comfortable.  They flinched at loud noises, and their hands went to their belt, fingers grazing their knife.  When you touched them too long, they often withdrew.

 

You tried not to let it bother you.  Now that you knew what happened, you could help them.

 

You think you feel bad for their father, gazing through sleepy sockets at your human.  They couldn’t see how interesting they were.  How passionate.  They were so full of  _ something _ that you had never seen, or perhaps had, but never thought to look too long at.

 

You didn’t agree killing their father was the best decision.  You weren’t as naive as to believe that talking it through with them would work either.  But it was done.  And they were here.  

 

You wouldn’t change them at all.  Even they were still them.  “WITH THE MEMORY OF THE HOURS OF EXQUISITE DELIGHT YOU HAVE GIVEN ME, I HAVE BUILT DEEP IN MY HEART, A CHAPEL FILLED WITH YOU,” You murmur quietly into their ear.  They wake slightly, opening an eye to stare unseeingly at you, before closing again and humming into your breast as they curled closed, as if to encompass you.

 

You know a lot of things.

  
Loving you is turning into one of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus is referencing Marcel Proust's letter to Anatole France. I like the idea that Pap is really into romantic sonnets and the like, as he references Hamlet in genocide runs. Papyrus is probably the biggest Willy Shakes nerd ever.


	12. Sparks Are Flying, In This Heated Battle!!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A reintroduction.
> 
> The title of this chapter is a Pokemon reference. Can you guess which one?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally got my own laptop!! Hopefully I'll be adding chapters more often now!
> 
> This chapter is dedicated to LunarRevolver who comments on almost all of my chapters and has been a real trooper in helping me get better with actual constructive criticism, and often boosts my morale. They are, objectively, the ideal commenter

You wake feeling refreshed, calm, and quite alone.  Sitting up, you steal/borrow a pair of Sans’s slippers and what you assume was a cropped flannel, but is so big it’s just a regular flannel on you.  You scrunch your nose.  You should really get some clothes.  You only had two pair on you, and now one probably had a giant hole in it from Undyne’s oversized toothpick.  

 

You stumble out, grabbing your terrible coffee from Papyrus.  You scratch your wound through your sleepy  haze.  Papyrus swats your hand and says something that sounds like it might have been offensive, but you just make a grunt and sip the hot drink.  “I should probably clean this now.  It’s been a few days,” you comment, but it came out slurred and practically unrecognizable.

 

Thankfully, Papyrus seems to have understood you.  “WE CAN CLEAN IT NOW, IF YOU ARE FEELING UP TO IT?”

 

You cock a brow.  “What do you mean, ‘we’?  You don’t know anything about cleaning wounds, do you?”

 

“I KNOW OF THE SUGAR PASTE!!!  IT’S A DELICIOUS HEALING METHOD, AND I ENCOURAGE IT 300 PERCENT!!!!”

 

“I meant cleaning.  Not care”.

 

He blinks.  “THERE IS A DIFFERENCE?  HUMAN... CARE?  CLEANING?  IS MUCH MORE COMPLICATED THAN I ANTICIPATED!  WHICH I ACTUALLY DIDN’T ANTICIPATE VERY MUCH, WHICH REALLY I SHOULD HAVE??  SHOULDN’T I STAY WITH YOU JUST IN CASE??”

 

You frown, finishing the coffee, feeling the prepackaged caffeine kick in.  “I was planning on just doing it in the shower.  I don’t think you want to be there for that”.

 

Papyrus’s cheeks flush.  “AH!  I SEE.  SHOULD I WAIT OUTSIDE THE DOOR THEN, JUST IN CASE?”

 

You shrug, stretching until you feel a twinge in your belly at the gash.  “If it makes you feel better, sure.  I’ll leave the door unlocked”.

 

Another instant coffee (this one was a rare caramel flavor and wasn’t quite as terrible) and two thoughts of cigarettes later, you are in the bathroom shrugging pants and shirt off while Papyrus sticks his skeletal hands under the door crack like a lonely cat.

 

“Papyrus, what are you doing?”  You smile whilst doing an awkward dance to get your pants off.

 

Papyrus’s voice, muffled by what you assume is his teeth pressed to the door, says, “TO COMFORT YOU IN YOUR TIME OF BATHING!  HOW WILL YOU FEEL SAFE AND SECURE IF YOU CANNOT SEE YOUR HANDSOME SKELETON LOVER WATCHING OVER YOU??  THE ANSWER IS SIMPLE!  YOU CAN SEE MY HANDSOME HAND NOW!  AND EVERYTHING IS MUCH MORE AMAZING THAN BEFORE!”

 

_ Lover _ .  You pause, waiting the water in the tub to rise.  You hadn’t thought about your relationship with the boys much.  You hadn’t thought you would be able to stay for very long, thinking you’d be murdered by King Asgore before you could settle.  When Papyrus and Sans offered to date you, you’d just taken the chance because, who wouldn’t want to date a skeleton if they could?  And both brothers were so kind and silly, you couldn’t help but feel affection in your chest stir for them; but now it was very clear that you would be staying.  Undyne hadn’t told Asgore, obviously, or he’d have killed you while you were out.

 

It just sort of came to you all of a sudden, that you  _ could  _ stay.  You’ve been happier with the bone brothers than you’ve ever been in your life.  You cared deeply for them, and they were adorable, but did you love them?  The thought made you nervous.  You’d never been able to be soft to people you’d dated, too afraid of being beaten by them too, or yourself hurting them.  You wouldn’t hurt them.  You wouldn’t.  You could, but you wouldn’t.

 

“(F/N)?  HAVE YOU DROWN?  CLAP YOUR HANDS IF YOU HAVE DROWN.  IF YOU HAVE NOT DROWN, LET ME KNOW……… SOME OTHER WAY!!!”

 

You snap from you daze, turning the water off.  “I’m fine,” you call.  You slowly peel the bandage back, for the moment of truth…

 

Only you couldn’t see, because it was covered in a giant scab.  You groaned in annoyance, stepping into the tub.  You grab the scrubby and soap it up before trying to wash the dried blood away to see the wound.

 

Scrubbing away at the scab you slowly discovered that there wasn’t one, almost at all.  It looked like it had healed almost completely, with a thin layer of skin over a hand-shaped burn mark.  You probably didn’t even need to put more sugar paste.  You prod the skin and wince at the hypersensitivity.  You should still bandage it probably.

 

You scoot out of the bath and dry yourself off, patting the wound and decided on not bandaging out of laziness.  You wouldn’t get an infection at least, and the feeling of the new scar rubbing on your shirt was… interesting.

 

You pull open the door after playing with Papyrus’s fingers a bit, teasing him with your toes (which he made a valiant attempt to snatch, but to no avail).  Wandering back downstairs your teasing was interrupted by a knock.  Opening the door, your stomach flew to your throat at the sight of Ice Wolf, Dogamy and Dogaressa, Doggo, and Lesser and Greater Dog.

 

You swallow.  “Uh… hey”.  Smooth.

 

Dogamy looks down, dipping his snout.  “Hi…  May we come in?”

 

You glance at Papyrus, who shoos his hands encouragingly at you and wanders to his room to allow you privacy.  “DO NOT WORRY!  THIS SKELETON KNOWS WHEN TO GET INTO THE CLOSET!!  NYEH HEH HEHEH!!”

 

“Yeah, come on it”.  You slide to the side as each dog rubs the snow off their paws on the floor mat.  You offer them something to drink, though they each refuse awkwardly.  

 

Suddenly, Dogaressa smacks her paws on the table.  “Enough of this cowering boys!  Don’t you have something to give our friend?”  You look up at the words, all of you seated at the kitchen table, Greater Dog’s ears flat in nervousness.  

 

“So we are still friends?” you ask hopefully.

 

Doggo pats you on the back pleasantly (after missing once).  “Of course!  You think we’d forget how you helped us?”

 

“And why wouldn’t you lie about being a… you know…  _ human _ ?  We’re the Royal Guard!  We’re supposed to catch you and take you to the King!  Which we aren’t!!” he says quickly after being elbowed by Lesser Dog.  “You’re our friend.  You aren’t evil or mean.  You’re not anything like we thought a human would be”.  Greater Dog yips an agreement.

 

“If it’s all the same to you,” says Dogaressa, “you’re still a dog to us”.

 

You can feel your heart clench in your chest.  “You guys…!” you gush, touched.  You reach around to Doggo on one side and Dogaressa on the other.  The Dogs swarm you licking your face and petting you on the head.

 

“Oh no!” cries Dogamy.  “Does this mean…

 

“Dogs  _ can’t  _ pet other dogs?!” exclaims Dogaressa.

 

You laugh.  “I think you’re safe”.  You suddenly notice for the first time a large pot on the ground.  “What’s that?” you ask.

 

“We thought we bring you something-something to help you get better!” cries Ice Wolf, heaving the pot up to the table and pulling the top off, releasing a heavy, meaty scent.  Ice Wolf grins proudly, tail wagging.  “Ice Family Borscht, just like Mama used to make!  Good for cold and when you have sniffles, yes?”

 

Greater Dog and Lesser Dog nudged forward what looked like a knit sweater (with a spear and bone knit into it, ironically enough) and a pair of gloves.

 

Doggo brought up a bag which turned out to be full of cinnamon buns and a kind of doughnut.  “We told Diana what happened and she thought she’d send some with us.  I made the Crabapple Fritters.  Sorry though, I think I overcooked them a little...”

 

Finally Dogaressa and Dogamy offered a takeout box with a Grillby’s logo.  “Grillby thought you might miss the food…”

 

“So he thought he would send you some!  We also thought it would help…”

 

“If we healed you?” commented the dog couple.  Inside the box was what looked like blackened marshmallows, fries, and a burger.

 

You smiled happy, small tears in your eyes.  “This is really nice of you, you guys… thank you…”

 

“Would you like us to heal you now or later?” asked Dogamy curiously.

 

“Actually,” you began, lifting your shirt, “I’m pretty much all healed up.  Whatever you two and Grillz did must’ve helped a lot, because now it only hurts when I stretch”.

 

The dogs gaped at your stomach, scarred from the burn and years of fights and abuse.  “What are those?” asks Ice Wolf.  “They look like cuts, but are not dusty?”

 

“How come you didn’t dust when you got cut anyway?  What was all that red stuff?” prods Doggo.

 

Pulling your shirt down, you settle in and explain about blood, and scar tissue.  They had a hard time following, but for the most part understood.  “So they are like physical reminders not to make the same mistakes that get you hurt?” asks Dogaressa.

 

“Kinda,” you say.  “Do you think that green stuff will help with the aches a bit?” you question.

 

“You mean our healing magic?  Possibly.  Why not try?” says Dogamy.

 

You raise the shirt again, and the dog couple rubbed each other’s paws together pulling apart slowly, revealing strands of green light.  They slowly pressed the green extract onto your stomach.  You winced.   _ Sticky, _ you thought.  Slowly, the aching subsided until there was no pain at all.  Glancing down as the dogs finished, you noticed the scar tissue had thickened and looked months older than it actually was, and best of all: it no longer itched.  You stretched as a test, and found you felt much better.  There was still a little shifting going about in your stomach area, but nothing bad.

 

You soon found yourself laughing with the dogs and having a fun time teasing Doggo over his new spiked collar.

 

Soon, you called out to Papyrus that you were heading to Grillby with the dogs.  Walking along, laughing with your friends, you were once again struck by how lucky you are.  You’ve been feeling very grateful as of late.  Tossing open the doors with the dogs, the bar falls silent.  

 

You stumble in your steps, suddenly very aware of every eye on you, feeling awkward.  Abruptly, everyone jumped to their feet and started to you, save Grillby, who patiently waited.  Surprisingly, you didn’t see Sans anywhere.  “You’re alright!” Shouts the disheveled horse monster, sunglasses falling from his face slightly.

 

You shrug, giving hellos to bar goers.  You find Frisk relaxing at a barstool with Grillby, chatting silently.  “Hey Frisk.  Hey Grillz”.  Grillby stumbles in his signing, as Frisk turns and waves.  Grillby is silent, picking up a glass and cleaning it, though it felt more like fidgeting with how stiff the elemental was.  “Dude, if you’re feeling bad, don’t.  You saved my life.  I probably would’ve died if you hadn’t helped”.  

 

He nodded stiffly.   How… have you been feeling?  I suspect humans take longer to heal, as you took a few days to rest?

 

“Oh, yeah.  I probably would have been in a hospital for a couple weeks if I had human doctors.  Green magic is way better, though I do miss painkillers.  The hospitals always give you the best ones…” you muse wistfully.  You hadn’t wanted to smoke your stash in the house, or around Papyrus for that matter.  “You gave me a pretty sick looking scar, though.  Wanna see?”  Without really waiting for consent, you pulled up your shirt, revealing a slightly melted looking handprint.  Mostly it was just a single raised surface.  “Anyways, I owe you one.  If you ever need any help or something, you can count on me”.

 

Grillby hesitated.   The stove in the back is broken.  I’ve been getting by with the oven, but I need the stove working again.  Do you think you can fix it?

 

You shrug, scooting by Lesser Dog to the back.  “I’ll see what I can do”.

 

You motion for Frisk to wait with Dogaressa, before following Grillby into the back.  It looked… surprisingly normal.  A hot fridge, stove, grill, and oven with a deep frier.  Grillby motioned to it, pulling out a small toolkit.  You both pulled the stove-oven combo’s top off, and soon pulled the under layer off as well.  Discovering a few wires chewed through by rats, you fixed them together with tape, and welded a pipe back into place with one of Grillby’s fingers.  By the time you finished, it was getting on in the afternoon.  Going back into the front, where Grillby offered you gold (you declined, telling him it would defeat the purpose of a favor) and picked Frisk up from winning a game of Go Fish with Doggo, who were betting fries.

 

Heading outside, you were interrupted by Papyrus, who almost literally ran into the two of you.  “HELLO AGAIN!  HOW STRANGE, SEEING THE TWO OF YOU IN THE TOWN WHERE WE LIVE!!  ACTUALLY, IT WAS NOT STRAGE OR UNEXPECTED AT ALL!  I WAS LOOKING FOR YOU BOTH.  WOULD YOU LIKE TO COME WITH ME TO VISIT ONE OF MY FRIENDS?”

 

You were mildly surprised.  “Yeah, sure babe.  Right now?”

 

He nodded.  “NOW IS OBJECTIVELY THE BEST TIME TO DO THINGS!”

 

You look down.  “Are you up for a walk, Frisk?”

 

They looked up and nodded, excitedly bouncing.

 

Surprisingly, you found yourselves taking the Boatgoer’s boat and not running like you’d thought.  “YOU’RE STILL HEALING, SO WE’RE TAKING THE EASY ROUTE!  BUT DON’T GET USED TO IT, BECAUSE I’M TAKING YOU OUT FOR A RUN WITH ME IN A FEW DAYS!”

 

Soon, you found yourselves walking up a familiar path, finding yourself outside a house shaped like a fish, with angry eye-windows and sharp teeth where a door might have been.  Papyrus knocks on the door, and shows you an orange-type bone attack.  “MAKE SURE TO GIVE HER ONE OF THESE.”

 

Soon the doors open to reveal a tall, familiar, toothy fish warrior.  “Hey, Papyrus!” She says, voice loud.  “Ready for your extra-private one-on-one training?”

 

“YOU BET I AM!” booms Papyrus, in the trademark Papyrus fashion.  “AND I BROUGHT MY DATEFRIEND, AND A REGULAR FRIEND!”  he says, shuffling aside, and pushing the two of you up to the Head of the Royal Guard.

 

She laughs and punches his shoulder.  “PAPYRUS!!  YOU SAUCY DOG!!  You didn’t tell me you got a date!”  She extends a hand to you.  “Hi!  It’s nice to meet-” she stops abruptly, looking at you for the first time.  You shift your body, and realize for the first time you left your knife at home.  The two of you break your stares to glare with narrowed eyes at a sweating Papyrus, looking nervously at the two of you. “... Why don’t.  You three.  Come in.”

 

Frisk follows Papyrus fearlessly, the two of them shuffling their feet on the mat.  You scrape your own, feeling naked without your knife in imminent danger.  You walk in to find Undyne putting the gold bone in a drawer, full of others of their likeness.  Your eyes meet again, and her teeth grind.  “Are you ready to start, Papyrus?”

 

Papyrus starts.  “WHOOPSY DOOPSY!  I HAVE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM!  YOU THREE HAVE FUN!!” And with that, Papyrus jumps to the wall… and out the window.

 

You and Undyne stare down.  “So… Papyrus huh?”

 

You shrug, trying to seem uncaring.  “He’s a charmer”.

 

You tap your foot, and Undyne’s eye twitches.  “So why are you here?  To rub your victory in my face?  To humiliate me even further?  IS THAT IT?”

 

Frisk shakes their head rapidly, looking mildly appalled.  You shrug.  “I honestly didn’t know this was your house.  Should have tipped me off when Papyrus said he’d be taking me to a friend’s”.

 

Undyne scrunches her nose slits.  “Then why are you here?”

 

You shrug again.  “We should have asked Papyrus when he was here”.

 

“... Wait.  Did you think that I’m going to be friends with you?!” the Head of the Royal guard asks.

 

Frisk nods boldly next to you, puffing their chest.

 

Undyne tips her head back with a deliriously happy expression.  “Really?  How delightful!!  I accept!  Let’s all frolic in the fields of friendship!” she cackles, before bending to sneer at you both.  “NOT!  Why would I EVER be friends with YOU?!” she clenches her fist.  “If you weren’t my houseguests, I’d beat you both up right now!!  You’re the enemies of everyone’s hopes and dreams!  I will NEVER be your friend!  Now get out of my house!”

 

“No you wouldn’t,” you say calmly.  “I saw how upset you looked, when you stabbed me.  I don’t think you could kill me if you tried”.

 

Frisk tugs on your shirt hem scoldingly, ignoring Undyne’s panicked look.  “YOU-”

 

“Don’t feel too bad about it.  I’m a lot better now.  And it’s okay.  We don’t have to be friends”.  You begin to slowly stroll out.  “C’mon, Frisk”

 

As though called, Papyrus leans in through the broken window.  “DANG!  WHAT A SHAME…  I THOUGHT UNDYNE COULD BE FRIENDS WITH YOU TWO!  ESPECIALLY MY DATEFRIEND!  BUT I GUESS… I OVERESTIMATED HER.  SHE’S JUST NOT UP TO THE CHALLENGE!”  And with that, Papyrus left once again, leaving behind the scent of the moon, and damp dirt.  

 

“CHALLENGE?!  WHAT?!  Papyrus, wait a second…!” Undyne hollers after him; but alas, the skeleton was gone.  He thinks I can’t be friends with YOU?  Fuhuhuhu!  What a joke!  I could make friends with a wimpy loser and a knock-off street-fighter any day!”

 

“Knock-off?!” you mutter indignantly.

 

“I’ll show him!” she continues, either not hearing, or uncaring.  “Listen up humans!  We’re not just going to be friends,” she growls, a manic gleam in her eyes similar to the one you saw battling her.  “We’re going to be… BESTIES!  I’ll make you like me so much, you won’t be able to think of anyone else!”

 

“I’m already dating two dorks, I don’t need another,” you grumble.

 

Undyne cackles over you with her monologue.  “It’s the PERFECT revenge!” she takes a moment to compose herself, before smiling in what was most likely supposed to be pleasant, but the effect ruined by the ghastly grin of sharp teeth.  “Why don’t you have a seat?”

  
The gleam in her eyes tell you that you don’t have much of a choice.


	13. Tea Time, Pee Time, See Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tea with the Head of the Royal Guard

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the hiatus. I kinda hit a wall with what I wanted to write, but I think I'm mostly passed it. I kind of felt pressured by how long my previous chapters were, so I'm probably going to shorten them from now on. Sorry, but it's just getting intimidating writing 8 or 10 pages a chapter. Maybe I'll write more sometimes, but some will be shorter. Also, I picked knitting back up, so if anyone reading this also knits, please feel free to talk to me because I need more friends that can knit because I have none. 0. I have no friends that knit please talk to me.

You find yourself standing in the room rather than sitting, compulsively reaching for a cigarette that isn’t there.  You sigh and find yourself taking a match and putting it in the corner of your mouth to fiddle with.  “Well, aren’t you going to sit?” Undyne asks pleasantly.

 

You frown.  “We don’t have to be friends, you know.  We just have to get along.  I’m willing to do it for Papyrus’s sake, if anything else,” you reply smoothly.

 

Undyne’s eye twitches.  “You really think that’s how this works?”

 

You shrug.  “Why not?  I’ve done it lots of times”.

 

“Well, I HAVEN’T!”

 

“That’s your problem.  I’m willing to just let things be”.

 

Undyne watched you strangely, while Frisk hesitantly took a seat at the table.  Undyne dragged a third stool in, and sat pointedly in the one across from the other two.  “Just stop making a big deal and SIT will you?” she snapped, sharp teeth flashing.

 

You start to argue, but find yourself sitting down.  There wasn’t much point to this, and you felt as though you could get by with being somewhat of a pair of compatriots.

 

Undyne got up suddenly.  “I just realized I didn’t get you anything to drink!  What do you want?” she asked, setting up some stuff: tea, sugar, hot chocolate, and a sickly yellow soda.  Frisk got up to point, but a sudden jerk and a spear was embedded in the table.  “HEY!  DON’T GET UP!  YOU’RE THE GUEST!” She shouted, and you found yourself wishing for a knife.  Magic must be so convenient to just have a weapon at all times.  She stumbled as though realizing she’d done something rather aggressive and took a deep breath, before pasting her large smile back on.  “...Just uh, use the spear to point to what you want, I guess”.

 

Frisk fumbled with the large spear, pushing it along to the tea boxes.  “Tea, huh?  Coming right up!”  Undyne flashes a grin, before pausing and looking to you, a small and cautious smile on their face.  “Did you… want anything?”

 

You look to Frisk, finding them fiddling with their new spear, and find yourself requesting tea as well.  Undyne grins, pleased, and grabs a pair of mugs from the sink, cleaning them while the water boiled.

 

Finally, she set the tea down in front of you both with a charming grin.  You both grabbed the boiling hot mugs to keep them from sliding off the broken table.

 

“Careful, it’s hot,” Undyne said, sitting parallel to you.  You simply held it in your hands, enjoying the warmth, while Frisk eagerly blew on it.  Undyne’s eye twitches.  “It’s not that hot, just drink it!” she snaps.

 

You cock an eyebrow taking a noisy slurp, making her eye twitch, and Frisk mimics you.  It’s burning hot, but its alright.

 

“Pretty good right?  Nothing but the best for my ABSOLUTLY MOST PRECIOUS FRIENDS!!”  Undyne says loudly, as though trying to convince herself.  A moment of silence passes, before Undyne begins again, whilst you are mid slurp.  “Hey…” she begins hesitantly.  “It’s kind of funny you chose THAT tea…  Golden Flower tea…  It’s Asgore’s favorite kind,” she muses.

 

“Oh yeah?” you ask.  You have terrible small talk skills, and it’s not like Frisk is much help.

 

“Yeah,” she replies.

 

You wait in silence another moment.

 

“You know,” she begins, “When you had me pinned down to the cave floor… over in Waterfall, and then just, let me go… You kind of reminded me of him”.  Her face falls a little, expression nostalgic, with a small smile on her toothy face.  “I was a pretty hot headed kid.  Once, to prove I was the strongest, I tried to fight Asgore.  Emphasis on TRIED.  I couldn’t land a single blow on him!  And worse, the whole time, he refused to fight back!  I was so humiliated...”

 

You frown.  “How does me kicking your as- uh butt remind you of someone like that?”

 

Undyne frowned.  “You just let me go!  Let me get away with it!  And you even gave me FOOD after so I could get home safe!  What kind of person almost kills someone and then just LETS THEM GO?!?!?!!!” Undyne said, shredding pieces of the table like an anxious person at a party would a styrofoam cup.  

 

You frown sipping tea.  “I didn’t just  _ let you go _ or try to kill you.  I don’t want to kill anybody”.

 

“But you HAVE killed before”.

 

You press your lips together, and take a deep breath to try to calm yourself with the tea, though your hand shakes.  “Listen, that was something completely different; you have no idea what that was.  I had to defend myself, and even then, I’ll admit that I went too far, and it’s no excuse for what I’ve done, but I don’t want to go back,” you reply, clutching the burning hot cup tighter and tighter.

 

Undyne looks at you oddly.  “Sans came to talk to me, before you two and Papyrus came by,” she says like it meant something.  “He said that whatever you told me I shouldn’t judge too harshly.  That you were only defending yourself, and whatever it was, you couldn’t change anyway, and you were trying to learn to live with the mistake”.

 

You frown looking at the table, deep in thought.  “He did, did he?”

 

Undyne continued, “I didn’t really believe him, but just hearing you and having seen your soul… whatever happened to you… It must have REALLY sucked”.

 

You chuckle.  “Yeah, you could say that”.  You down the rest of the tea.  You check Frisk, theirs having been out for a while, while they play with the fish shaped mug, hesitantly glancing at you.   _ Can I stay? _ Their gaze pleaded.  You rolled your eyes with a sigh and nodded, while they grinned.

 

You stood and stretched.  “Well, thanks for the tea.  Hope you don’t mind if Frisk sticks around.  They seem to have taken a liking to you”.

 

Undyne looks to Frisk, who gives them a flirtatious wink, making them squint suspiciously.  “Do you mind if I see you out?” she asks.

 

You quirk your lips, nodding, as you put your hands in your pockets.  You walk out, Undyne on your tail.  You turn.  “Thanks for having us.  And for the story”.

 

Undyne nods and grabs your arm strongly.  “Listen, if you took me down in one shot, who knows what you could do to Asgore…  Just give him a chance, won’t you?” she asks pleadingly.

 

You blink and you realize  _ she doesn’t know _ .  “Dude, I’m not leaving”.

 

She lets you go in confusion.  “What?”

 

You shuffle in your pockets for your phone.  You’ve got a missed call from Toriel.  “Yeah, I’m staying in Snowdin with Pap and Sans.  The way I figure, whenever I die down here, you can just take my soul to Asgore, or the Scientist guy, or whoever.  Like hell am I going back to the surface.  Why the hell would I leave when I finally found…” you trail off.  People that love you?  People you love?  Did you love them?  Or were you just in love with the way they treated you?  Or were you just… bored?  You think the last one might be the scariest thought.

 

Undyne blinked, and her eyes grew hopeful.  “I get it.  I can see it all over your dumb face!  You LOVE THEM!!”  She cackles.  “I KNEW your soul was warmer! I-”

 

“You can tell?!” you ask, shocked.  “Do I?”

 

Undyne looked at you like you were an idiot.  “OF COURSE!  Did you NOT know?!  Why didn’t you just look at your soul, you moron?!”

 

You frown, closing yourself off a bit.  “It’s not like I can; I’m a  _ human _ , remember?  Most humans don’t even know if we even  _ have  _ souls.  That’s actually a big matter of debate up on the surface”.

 

Undyne looks almost mystified.  “SERIOUSLY?  MAN!  Humans are weird!  Well, at least now you know!”

 

But could she have been wrong?  You hadn’t ever felt this way about anyone, and a lot of people would think someone loved someone and then they did something different or knew they didn’t, so the thought of trusting another’s sense of love was difficult.  You think you just need time.

 

“I’ll see you around, Undyne”.

 

“Hey,” she calls, and you turn.  “Are we friends?!”

 

You grin  “Sure”.

 

You turn, and leave.  

 

Waterfall is peaceful.  You reach for your flask, thumbing it carefully.  You think about Papyrus and his thought of how your smoking was gross.  You should probably take better care of yourself.  When you were back with the others, you’d go off cigarettes whenever you had a fight coming up, but you never really quit, and drinking a shelf a week couldn’t be good for you.  You find yourself surprised by thinking of quitting smoking and drinking, or at least drinking less.

 

You ponder what changed.  You definitely didn’t care any more about yourself than before so what changed?

 

You can’t be sure.

  
You head home.


End file.
